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BIOGRAPHICAI  SKETCHES 


OF  THB 

STATE  OFFICERS 


MEMBERS  OF  THE  LEGISLATURE 

OP  THl 

STATE  OF  NEW  YORK. 

IN  1860, 


WM.  D.  MURPHY, 

AUTHOR  OF  “BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES,”  ETC.,  IN  1868  AND  *60. 


NEW  YORK : 

WYNKOOP,  HALLENBECK  & THOMAS,  PRINTERS,  49  ANN  STREET. 


Entered,  according  to  an  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1860,  by 
WILLIAM  D.  MUEPHY, 

in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  Northern  District  of  New  York. 


290c5/  lAP 


92  3.Z 
M^5b 


INTRODUCTION. 


This  is  the  third  volume  of  the  kind  the  author  has  seen  proper  to 
present  to  the  public.  He  had  no  idea  of  issuing  another  volume 
when  the  first  had  made  its  appearance  ; neither  was  such  his 
intention,  when  he  had  completed  the  second  volume.  But  the 
unexpected  and  gratifying  success  with  which  he  met  in  both  in- 
stances, in  attaining  the  principal  object  of  the  work,  has  induced 
him  to  repeat  the  enterprise  again.  His  chief  design  then,  as  it  is 
now,  was  to  furnish  impartial,  truthful,  and  condensed  biograph- 
ical sketches  of  the  Governor,  Lieutenant-Governor,  State  officers, 
and  the  members  of  both  branches  of  the  Legislature,  and  in  this,  at 
least,  he  has  been  once  more  eminently  successful,  notwithstand- 
ing the  comparatively  very  little  time  he  has  had  to  spare  from 
his  professional  duties  in  its  preparation.  The  work  will  be  found 
perfectly  reliable,  even  as  to  the  most  unimportant  dates,  and 
although  regarded  by  some  as  of  only  temporary  interest,  becomes 
the  more  valuable  as  it  becomes  older,  not  only  as  a book  of 
reference,  but  in  every  other  respect. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  necessity  of  an  index  to  the  volume 
has  been  entirely  obviated  by  the  alphabetical  order  in  which  the 
Senators  and  Members  of  Assembly  have  been  respectively  ar- 
ranged. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


EDWIN  D.  MOEGAN, 

GOVERNOE. 

Gov.  Morgan  is  one  of  those  men  not  uncommon  in 
this  country,  who  pursue  their  course  quietly  through 
life,  doing  well  and  earnestly  whatever  they  undertake. 
His  career  has  been  simply  that  of  a successful  mer- 
chant, and  though  he  has  for  many  years  taken  a deep 
interest,  and  a somewhat  active  part,  in  State  and  Na- 
tional politics,  he  has  never  held  any  important  public 
office,  except  that  of  State  Senator,  till  his  promotion 
to  the  distinguished  position  he  now  occupies. 

Gov.  Morgan  was  born  in  the  town  of  Washington, 
Berkshire  county.  Mass.,  on  the  8th  of  February,  1811. 
His  father,  Jasper  Morgan,  resided  in  that  town  till 
1822,  when  he  removed  with  his  family  to  Windsor, 
Connecticut,  where  he  is  still  living  at  a ripe  old  age. 
Until  he  had  reached  his  seventeenth  year,  Edwin 
passed  his  life  very  much  as  the  sons  of  New  England 
farmers  generally  do — in  tilling  the  soil  and  going  to 
school.  But  with  his  common-school  education,  a capi- 


6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ta^of  thirty-seven  and  a half  cents,  and  a firm  deter- 
mination to  succeed  in  life,  by  his  industry  and 
integrity,  he  went  forth  to  seek  his  fortune,  in  1828,  in 
Hartford,  Conn. 

The  young  men  of  the  present  day  will  doubtless 
smile  at  hearing  that  he  bound  himself  to  a Hartford 
trader,  at  a salary  of  $60  for  the  first  year,  $15  for  the 
second  year,  and  $100  for  the  third  year.  But  during 
his  clerkship,  and  when  only  nineteen  years  of  age,  an 
incident  occurred  which  exhibits,  in  a marked  degree, 
his  real  character.  A trip  to  the  great  city  was  not 
then  made  with  such  facility  as  at  this  time,  but  as 
he  had  served  for  two  or  three  years  in  the  store,  and 
acquired  the  confidence  of  his  employer,  he  was  per- 
mitted to  go  to  New  York,  and,  to  combine  business 
with  pleasure,  was  entrusted  to  make  sundry  purchases 
of  tea,  sugar,  etc.,  and  also  corn,  which  was  then  be- 
coming an  article  of  import,  instead  of  export.  The 
visit  was  made,  and  Edwin  returned  in  due  time,  com- 
ing home  by  the  old  stage  route.  After  being  greeted 
and  welcomed,  his  employer  inquired  as  to  the  corn. 
The  price  was  very  satisfactory,  but  his  employer 
doubted  if  the  article  would  be  of  very  good  quality 
at  so  low  a rate.  Edwin  immediately  drew  a handful, 
first  from  one  pocket  and  then  from  another,  as  samples, 
and  the  old  gentleman  expressed  his  approbation.  It 
had  been  usual  for  the  dealers  to  purchase  two  or  three 
hundred  bushels  at  a time,  and  he  then  inquired  of 
Edwin  as  to  the  quantity,  but  was  nonplussed  by  the 
answer,  that  he  had  bought  two  cargoes,  and  that  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


7 


vessels  were  probably  in  the  river.  Why,  Edwin,” 
said  the  astonished  old  gentleman,  ^‘what  are  we  to 
do  with  two  cargoes  of  corn  ? Where  can  we  put  it  ? 
Where  can  we  dispose  of  it  ?”  “ Oh  1”  replied  Edwin, 

“ I have  disposed  of  all  that  you  don’t  want,  at  an  ad- 
vance ; I have  shown  the  samples  to  Messrs.  A.  B., 
who  wish  three  hundred  bushels  ; C.  & Co.,  three  hund- 
red bushels,  etc.,  etc.  I could  have  disposed  of  three 
cargoes,  if  I had  had  them.  I stopped  in  the  stores  as 
I came  from  the  stage  office,  and  made  salee.” 

It  was  a new  phase,  and  out  of  the  old  routine,  but 
the  gains  and  results  were  not  to  be  questioned.  The 
following  morning  Edwin  was  at  the  store,  as  always, 
in  season,  and  had  taken  the  broom  to  sweep  out  the 
counting-room,  when  his  employer  entered.  I think,” 
said  he,  “ you  had  better  put  aside  the  broom  ; we  will 
find  some  one  else  to  do  the  sweeping.  A man  who  can 
go  to  New  York,  and  on  his  own  responsibility  pur- 
chase two  cargoes,  and  make  sale  of  them  without 
counselling  with  his  principal,  can  be  otherwise  more 
advantageously  employed.  It  is  best  that  he  should 
become  a partner  in  the  firm  for  which  he  is  doing  so 
much.”  Although  not  of  age,  he  was  forthwith  taken 
into  partnership,  and  from  that  day  to  this,  success 
has  marked  all  his  business  operations. 

Shortly  after  attaining  his  majority.  Gov.  Morgan 
was  elected  a member  of  the  City  Council  of  Hartford. 
In  1833  he  was  married  to  Miss  Waterman,  of  that 
place,  by  whom  he  has  one  surviving  child — a son  of 
mature  years  ; and  in  December,  1836,  removed  to  the 


8 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


city  of  New  York,  where  he  established  himself  as  a 
wholesale  grocer.  He  was  prudent,  and  used  his 
small  capital — $4,000 — with  sagacity  and  discretion. 
He  was  thus  enabled  to  pass  through  the  trying  times 
of  1837-42  without  disaster,  and  gradually  to  in- 
crease his  fortune,  until  now  he  ranks  among  the 
richest  merchants  of  the  city,  the  house  of  E.  D.  Mor- 
gan & Co.  standing  among  the  first  in  New  York.  He 
occupied  a somewhat  prominent  position  in  that  city 
for  many /ears,  before  he  cared  about  assuming  public 
duties.  At  length,  in  1849,  at  the  request  of  many 
gentlemen  of  his  political  faith,  he  became  a mem- 
ber of  the  Board  of  Assistant  Aldermen.  In  that 
year,  as  is  well  known,  the  cholera  broke  out  and 
raged  with  fearful  violence  throughout  the  metropolis. 
At  that  time  he  was  one  of  the  Sanitary  Committee, 
and  upon  him  devolved  particularly  the  duty  of  pro- 
viding hospitals  for  the  sick  ; but  instead  of  leaving 
the  city,  and  seeking  safety  and  repose  in  the  country, 
he  remained  at  his  post,  and  for  nearly  four  months 
devoted  a large  share  of  each  day  to  administering  to 
the  wants  of  the  afflicted. 

In  1850,  Gov.  Morgan  was  elected  to  the  Senate’  from 
the  city  of  New  York,  and  was  re-elected  in  1852.  He, 
at  once,  distinguished  himself  in  that  body  as  a correct 
business  man,  speaking  rarely  but  to  the  point,  and  de- 
voting himself  assiduously  to  the  less  obtrusive  but 
more  useful  duties  of  his  position.  Since  the  organ- 
ization of  the  Republican  party,  he  has  been  one  of  its 
most  honored  and  active  members.  He  was  for  some 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


9 


years  Chairman  of  the  Whig  State  Central  Committee, 
and  was,  up  to  the  time  of  his  nomination  for  Governor, 
Chairman  of  the  Republican  State  Central  Committee, 
which  position  he  had  occupied  since  the  organization 
of  that  party.  He  was  one  of  the  officers  of  the  Pitts- 
burgh National  Convention  in  the  winter  of  1855,  which 
was  the  first  practical  step  taken  for  the  establishment 
of  the  national  organization  of  the  Republican  party, 
and  was  then  chosen  Chairman  of  the  National  Com- 
mittee, a post  which  he  still  holds.  He  occupied  the 
position  of  one  of  the  Commissioners  of  Emigration 
some  two  years,  but  resigned  the  place  after  his  elec- 
tion as  Gcf^ernor. 

The  administration  of  Gov.  Morgan  has,  thus  far, 
fallen  somewhat  short  of  the  expectations  entertained 
by  his  friends  at  the  opening  of  his  official  career.  His 
reputation  as  an  eminently  successful  business  man,  of 
positive  firmness  and  great  decision  of  character,  had 
prepared  the  minds  of  all  for  an  administration  after 
the  style  of  “ Old  Hickory  — full  of  encouragement  to 
the  whole  people,  and  the  general  welfare  and  pros- 
perity of  the  entire  State;  but,  strange  to  say,  nothing 
has,  as  yet,  transpired  in  his  official  conduct  to  war- 
rant any  such  distinction,  and  his  course  on  most  of 
the  prominent  questions  that  have  come  before  him, 
since  his  advent  to  Executive  honors,  has  been  vacil- 
lating, undecided,  and,  to  a greater  or  less  degree, 
disadvantageous  to  the  best  interests  of  the  State. 
This  fact  is  especially  illustrated  by  his  course  on  the 
subject  of  a bill  appropriating  a certain  amount  of 
1 * 


10 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


money  to  aid  the  completion  of  the  Albany  & Sus- 
quehanna Railroad — a measure  of  conceded  merit,  and 
one  which  cannot  fail  to  prove  highly  advantageous 
to  the  section  of  the  State  through  which  the  road  is 
being  constructed.  After  passing  both  branches  of 
the  Legislature,  a year  ago,  His  Excellency  promptly 
vetoed  the  bill,  upon  constitutional  grounds,  while  in 
his  late  annual  message,  he  takes  particular  pains  to 
inform  the  Legislature,  that  he  will  not  again  withhold 
his  official  sanction  from  a similar  measure,  if  pre- 
sented to  him  for  that  purpose.  The  same  may  be  said 
of  his  course  on  the  subject  of  the  ^‘lobfcy^^ — a body 
which  has  become  second  to  none  other  in  itl^  influences 
upon  the  legislative  department  of  the  government.  In 
his  first  annual  message  to  the  Legislature,  he  impress- 
ively warned  the  representatives  of  the  people,  that  the 
legislation  of  the  State  had  already  been  too  much  con- 
trolled by  the  lobby  influence,  and  that  he  would  never 
sanction  any  measure  which  he  had  the  slightest  cause 
to  suspect  had  been  passed  by  such  an  influence  ; 
and  yet,  when  that  portion  of  his  message  had  been 
referred  to  a standing  committee  in  the  Senate,  with 
special  power,  he  quietly  allowed  his  political  friends 
in  that  body  to  “crush  out”  all  investigation  on  the 
subject,  and  the  lobby  cormorants,  who  had  wholly 
deserted  the  Capitol  at  the  very  mention  of  an  investi- 
gation, again  returned,  like  the  Goths  and  Vandals  of 
old,  with  increased  numbers  and  more  voracious  appe- 
tites. Many  of  his  appointments,  too,  to  the  various 
places  of  public  trust  under  the  Executive  control,  have 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


11 


been  eminently  destructive  to  the  public  interests,  and 
so  palpably  and  notoriously  unfit  and  improper,  that, 
in  several  instances,  it  was  only  after  the  most  des- 
perate and  protracted  struggle,  that  his  political  friends 
in  the  Senate  would  allow  them  to  be  confirmed  by 
that  body.  Until  there  is  some  better  evidence  to  the 
contrary,  therefore,  it  may  doubtless  safely  be  inferred, 
that  something  more  than  simply  the  qualifications  of 
a successful  business  man  are  required  to  make  a suc- 
cessful statesman,  and  Governor  of  a great  State  like 
New  York. 

It  may,  however,  be  creditable  to  Gov.  Morgan  here 
to  state,  that  more  than  eighteen  years  ago,  when  pub- 
lic sentiment  was  just  beginning  to  arouse  on  the 
subject  of  temperance,  he  became  convinced  that  the 
traffic  in  intoxicating  liquors  was  wrong,  and  though 
not  then  nor  now  a professed  temperance  man,  he  and 
his  firm  from  that  time  abandoned  the  sale  of  wines 
' and  liquors,  which  was  then  universally  considered  a 
legitimate  part  of  a grocer’s  business. 

In  person,  the  Governor  is  tall  and  stoutly  built, 
with  strongly-marked  features,  and  a dignified,  aristo- 
cratic countenance,  and  exhibits  a uniform  habit  of 
devoting  himself  earnestly  and  assiduously  to  the  dis- 
charge of  his  official  duties. 


12 


BIOGKAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


EGBERT  CAMPBELL, 

LIEUTENANT-GOVEKNOR. 

Lieut.  Gov.  Campbell  is  a native  of  the  pleasant 
little  village  of  Bath,  Steuben  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he 
was  born  in  the  year  1809,  and  where  he  now  resides. 
He  is  a son  of  the  late  Kobert  Campbell,  Sr.,  who  died 
in  1849,  and  who  emigrated  to  this  country  from  Scot- 
land, and  settled  in  the  town  of  Bath,  as  early  as 
1794.  He  followed  the  honest  occupation  of  a farmer, 
and  was,  in  every  respect,  a fair  representative  of  the 
very  best  type  of  Scottish  character. 

Mr.  Campbell  was  educated  chiefly  at  the  Geneva 
Academy  and  College.  He  then  received  a thorough 
course  of  legal  training,  and  at  once  entered  upon  the 
practice  of  law,  in  his  native  village,  where  he  has 
always  since  been  engaged  in  his  profession,  with  the 
exception  of  a short  time,  which  he  passed  at  Auburn. 
As  a lawyer  he  is  sagacious  and  able,  and  although 
making  no  pretensions  to  forensic  display,  never  fails 
to  express  himself  with  plainness  and  force.  He  pos- 
sesses a clear,  strong,  logical  mind,  and  is  liberal, 
though  tenacious,  in  the  maintenance  of  his  own  opin- 
ions. He  is  now  engaged  in  farming  and  in  the  pur- 
suit of  his  profession,  and  has  been  eminently  success- 
ful in  both.  Although  not  ambitious  of  political 
notoriety,  he  has  been  an  active  and  very  influential 
politician  in  the  county  of  Steuben,  from  his  early 
youth  up.  He  has  an  unfeigned  aversion  to  otfice, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


13 


preferring  to  devote  himself  exclusively  to  the  private 
management  of  his  party,  in  which  he  has  proven 
himself  an  adept,  and  has  almost  invariably  refused  to 
allow  his  name  to  be  brought  forward  in  connection 
with  any  public  office.  He  was,  however,  a member 
of  the  Constitutional  Convention  of  1846,  where  he 
took  a prominent  and  influential  part  in  behalf  of  the 
notorious  Stop  and  Tax  Law,”  and  is  now  a Eegent 
of  the  University.  He  was  always  a bold,  fearless, 
and  uncompromising  member  of  the  Democratic  party 
until  the  Buffalo  schism,  when  he  became  identified 
with  the  friends  of  Mr.  Van  Buren,  many  of  whom  have 
since,  like  himself,  joined  the  Republican  ranks. 

As  the  presiding  officer  of  the  Senate,  Mr.  Campbell 
has  discharged  his  duties,  thus  far,  with  marked  abil- 
ity and  impartiality,  and  has  not  failed  to  already 
prove  himself  a worthy  successor,  in  that  position,  of 
such  distinguished  men  as  De  Witt  Clinton,  John  Tay- 
lor, Erastus  Root,  Edward  P.  Livingston,  Daniel  S. 
Dickinson,  Hamilton  Fish,  Sanford  E.  Church,  Henry 
J.  Raymond,  and  Henry  R.  Selden. 

His  personal  appearance  is  that  of  a man  who  is  in 
the  full  enjoyment  of  matured  intellectual  powers,  and 
a sound,  unimpaired  physical  constitution.  He  is  ra- 
ther below  the  medium  size,  with  dark  blue  eyes,  dark 
brown  hair,  head  and  features  finely  formed,  and  has 
a cool  and  deliberate,  though  firm  and  uncompromising, 
expression  of  countenance  which  at  once  gives  assur- 
ance of  the  man.  He  is  married,  and  occupies  a 
deservedly  high  position  both  in  the  social  and  politi- 


14 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


cal  world.  He  is  unpretending,  and  somewhat  re- 
served in  his  general  deportment  ; but  his  social 
intercourse  is  always  of  the  most  cordial  character  ; 
and  the  longer  he  is  known,  the  stronger  and  more 
unyielding  becomes  the  attachment  of  his  friends  for 
him.  He  is  well  liked  by  the  people  of  Albany,  among 
whom  he  is  no  longer  a stranger,  and  his  separation 
from  them,  at  the  expiration  of  his  present  term  of 
official  service,  will  be  the  occasion  of  a feeling  of 
universal  regret  on  their  part,  including  men  of  all 
parties. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


15 


STATE  OFEICERS. 


DAVID  E.  FLOYD  JONES, 

SECRETARY  OF  STATE. 

Mr.  Jones  was  born  on  the  south  side  of  Long  Island, 
at  Fort  Neck,  Queens  county,  N.  Y.,  on  the  6th  of 
April,  1813.  His  parents,  Thomas  Floyd  Jones  and 
Cornelia  Herring  Jones,  are  both  dead,  the  former 
having  died  in  August,  1851,  at  the  age  of  sixty-three, 
and  the  latter  in  December,  1839,  at  the  age  of  forty- 
three.  His  ancestry  has  been  traced  as  far  back  as 
Thomas  Jones,  who  was  a major  in  the  army  of  King 
James,  and  who,  after  being  defeated  at  the  battle  of 
the  Boyne,  emigrated  from  Strabane,  Ireland,  to  Ame- 
rica, as  early  as  1692.  He  subsequently  removed  to 
Ehode  Island,  and  after  marrying  a daughter  of 
Thomas  Townsend,  settled  at  Fort  Neck,  where  he 
resided  until  his. death,  in  1113.  His  son,  David  Jones, 
to  whom  his  property  at  that  place  was  devised,  was 
born  in  September,  1699.  In  1137,  he  was  chosen  a 
member  of  the  General  Assembly,  and  continued  in 
that  body  until  1158,  occupying  the  position  of  Speak- 
er, during  a period  of  thirteen  years.  Throughout  his 
whole  life,  and  in  every  position,  he  was  the  unyield- 
ing advocate  of  the  rights  of  the  people  against  every 


16 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


species  of  royal  encroachment,  and  no  man  of  his  day 
participated  more  largely  in  the  public  confidence  and 
respect.  On  one  occasion,  while  Speaker,  he  ordered 
th’e  doors  of  the  Assembly  closed  against  the  Gover- 
nor, until  a bill,  then  under  consideration,  could  be 
passed,  which  His  Excellency  had  determined  to  pre- 
vent by  an  immediate  prorogation.  In  1758  he  was 
appointed  a Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  Colony, 
which  he  resigned  in  1773,  and  died  on  the  1st  of  Oc- 
tober, 1775. 

Thomas  Jones,  the  oldest  son  of  David  Jones,  was  also 
a Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  Colony.  He  mar- 
ried Miss  De  Lancey,  a daughter  of  Lieut.  Governor 
J ames  De  Lancey,  and  sister  of  the  father  of  the  Eight 
Eev.  Bishop  De  Lancey,  of  Western  New  York,  and 
died  in  England. 

Samuel  Jones,  the  grandson  of  Major  Thomas  Jones, 
and  the  great-grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
was  born  on  the  26th  of  July,  1734.  He  was  in  due 
time  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  soon  found  himself  in 
the  enjoyment  of  an  extensive  and  lucrative  practice. 
For  his  exemplary  industry,  high  attainments,  and 
great  purity  of  character,  he  was  looked  upon  as  a 
model  for  the  imitation  of  all  who  aimed  at  distinction 
in  jurisprudence.  His  office  was  eagerly  sought  by 
students  ; and  besides  De  Witt  Clinton,  he  instructed 
many  who  afterwards  rose  to  much  distinction.  He 
was  often  in  the  General  Assembly,  and  in  1778  was 
a member  of  the  convention  that  adopted  the  Consti- 
tution of  the  United  States,  of  which  body  his  intimate 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


It 


friend,  George  Clinton,  was  President.  In  1789,  he 
was  associated  with  Richard  Yarick,  in  revising  the 
statutes  of  the  State  of  New  York,  which  was  chiefly 
executed  by  Mr.  Jones  himself,  with  uncommon  accu- 
racy and  expedition.  He  was,  in  the  same  year,  appoint- 
ed Recorder  of  the  City  of  New  York,  which  position 
he  held  until  1797,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  the 
Hon.  James  Kent.  In  1796  he  organized,  at  the 
request  of  Gov.  Jay,  the  office  of  Comptroller,  and  was 
the  first  Comptroller  ever  appointed  in  the  State.  He 
died  on  the  21st  of  November,  1819,  leaving  five  sons, 
the  oldest  of  whom,  Samuel  Jones,  has  been  Chancel- 
lor of  the  State  of  New  York,  Chief  Justice  of  the 
Superior  Court  of  the  City  of  New  York,  and  a Justice 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State.  His  second  son. 
Major  William  Jones,  the  grandfather  of  the  subject 
of  this  sketch,  on  his  mothers  side,  was  for  eight  years 
a useful  and  intelligent  member  of  the  Legislature  of 
this  State,  and  died  only  a few  years  since,  at  an  ad- 
vanced age.  He  was  greatly  esteemed  during  life, 
and  left  behind  him  a name  of  which  his  surviving 
children  and  grand-children  are  justly  proud. 

Mr.  Jones  received  the  rudiments  of  his  education 
at  Christ’s  Church  Academy,  Manhassett,  Long  Island, 
and  in  1829  entered  the  Sophomore  class  of  Union 
College,  at  Schenectady,  N.  Y.,  from  which  institution 
he  graduated  in  1832.  He  then  studied  law  with  the 
late  Samuel  W.  Jones,  of  Schenectady,  and  in  1836 
commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  the  city 
of  New  York,  as  a partner  of  the  late  James  P.  How- 


18 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ard.  He  continued  the  practice  of  the  law  until  the 
fall  of  1840,  when  he  was  chosen  a Member  of  the 
Assembly  from  the  city  of  New  York.  He  was  re-elect- 
ed in  1841,  and  again  in  1842,  and  throughout  his 
entire  career  in  that  body,  showed  himself  an  honest 
and  capable  representative.  In  1843  he  was  the 
successful  candidate  for  a seat  in  the  Senate  from  the 
First  District,  then  comprising  the  counties  of  New 
York,  Kings,  and  Richmond,  and  was  a prominent  and 
influential  member  of  the  Constitutional  Convention  of 
1846,  from  the  city  of  New  York.  Soon  after  the  ex- 
piration of  his  Senatorial  term,  on  the  31st  of  Decem- 
ber, 1841,  he  was,  after  the  death  of  Jesse  Oakley, 
appointed  Clerk  of  the  Superior  Court  of  the  City  of 
New  York,  by  Chief  Justice  Oakley,  Judge  Sandford, 
and  Judge  Yanderpoel.  He  successfully  occupied  this 
position  until  the  spring  of  1852,  when  he  resigned  it, 
and  returned  to  his  native  place,  where  he  now  resides, 
on  a portion  of  the  property  which  has  been  in  the 
family  for  more  than  a century  and  a half.  He  has 
been  quite  successful  in  his  agricultural  pursuits,  and 
during  the  past  two  years  has  been  honored  with 
the  position  of  President  of  the  Queens  County  Agri- 
cultural Society. 

In  1856,  Mr.  Jones  reluctantly  consented  to  repre- 
sent his  native  county  once  more  in  the  lower  branch 
of  the  Legislature,  and  at  the  session  which  followed, 
was  the  Democratic  candidate  for  Speaker,  and  again 
a useful  and  industrious  member  of  that  body.  He 
has  been  Supervisor  of  his  native  town,  during  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


19 


past  three  years,  and  now  holds  the  position  of  Chair- 
man of  the  Board.  His  nomination  for  the  distin- 
guished position  he  now  occupies,  was  made  with  great 
unanimity  by  both  wings  of  the  Democracy,  at  their 
State  Convention,  in  the  fall  of  1859,  and  after  receiv- 
ing the  indorsement  of  the  American  State  Conven- 
tion, at  Utica,  with  equal  unanimity,  he  was  triumph- 
antly elected.  He  has,  throughout  his  entire  political 
career,  always  been  a straight-forward,  consistent,  un- 
yielding, and  persevering  Democrat  of  the  National 
Conservative  or  Hard-shell  stamp,  and  although  be- 
longing to  the  purer  class  of  politicians,  has  never 
failed  to  actively  contribute  his  full  share  of  service 
to  the  successful  promotion  of  the  principles  and  poli- 
cy of  that  party. 

As  a speaker  he  is  fluent  and  forcible,  and  in  every 
public  capacity  in  which  he  has  been  called  upon  to 
serve  the  people,  he  has  given  the  strongest  evidence, 
that  he  has  inherited,  in  no  ordinary  degree,  the  high 
order  of  ability  and  capacity  for  public  life  which  so 
much  distinguished  his  ancestors.  He  is  a gentleman 
of  prepossessing  personal  appearance,  being  tall  and 
elegantly  formed,  with  black,  bushy  hair,  heavy  black 
whiskers,  clear  black  eyes,  and  a mild,  intelligent 
countenance,  and  is  kind,  courteous,  and  agreeable 
in  his  intercourse  with  all  with  whom  he  comes  in 
contact. 


20 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ROBERT  DENNISTON, 

COMPTROLLER. 

Mr.  Denniston  was  born  on  the  15th  of  October,  1800, 
in  the  town  of  Blooming  Grove,  Orange  county, 
N.  Y.  His  great-grandfather,  Alexander  Denniston, 
with  his  brother-in-law,  Charles  Clinton,  and  his  friend 
John  Young,  left  the  county  of  Longford,  Ireland, 
where  they  were  born,  and  in  the  latter  part  of  May, 
1129,  embarked  from  Dublin  for  New  York,  landing 
at  Cape  Cod,  in  the  month  of  October,  after  a perilous 
passage  of  twenty-one  weeks  and  three  days.  In  the 
spring  of  1131,  the  three  pioneers  settled  in  New 
Windsor,  Orange  county,  N.  Y.,  and  from  the  top 
of  a high  hill  in  that  town,  named  the  country,  as  far 
as  they  could  see.  Little  Britain,  which  name  the 
neighborhood  still  retains,  while  the  high  hill  is  known 
as  the  Clinton  Burying-Ground.  The  mother  of  Mr. 
Denniston,  who  still  survives,  was  the  youngest  of  a 
large  family  by  the  name  of  Morrison,  all  of  whom 
were  born  at  Bellanyhinch,  in  the  county  of  Down, 
Ireland,  with  the  exception  of  herself.  They  also 
settled  in  Little  Britain,  where  many  of  their  descend- 
ants still  reside.  It  will  thus  be  perceived  that  the 
subject  of  this  sketch  is  of  pure  Irish  blood,  of  which 
he  has  frequently  been  known  to  boast. 

Mr.  Denniston  commenced  his  education  at  the 
Blooming  Grove  Academy,  on  the  1st  of  January,  1815, 
under  the  Rev.  Joshua  Boyd,  who  now  resides  at 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


21 


Newburgh,  and  in  July,  1820,  graduated  at  Union 
College,  Schenectady.  Among  his  class-mates  were 
Laurens  P.  Hickok,  present  Vice-President  of  that 
institution ; Taylor  Lewis,  one  of  the  most  accomplished 
Greek  scholars  in  the  United  States;  William  Kent, 
whose  distinguished  legal  talents  have  left  an  ever- 
lasting impress  upon  the  jurisprudence  of  the  country; 
William  H.  Seward,  now  representing  New  York  in 
the  United  States  Senate;  John  C.  Wright,  formerly 
State  Comptroller;  James  G.  Hopkins,  Alfred  E. 
Campbell,  and  several  others  who  have  held  prominent 
public  positions  in  the  country.  After  leaving  college, 
he  settled  on  a farm  within  one  and  a half  miles  of  his 
native  place,  which  he  subsequently  inherited,  and  on 
which  he  has  continued  to  reside.  He  soon  became  a 
military  oiG&cer,  a Justice  of  the  Peace,  and,  by  the  ap- 
pointment of  Gov.  Marcy,  a County  Judge.  In  1835  he 
was  an  active  and  prominent  member  of  the  Assembly, 
and  successfully  held  the  same  position  in  the  years 
1839  and  ’40.  The  next  year  he  entered  the  Senate, 
as  one  of  the  representatives  from  what  was  then  the 
second  district,  and  began  his  labors  in  that  capacity 
with  such  men  as  Alonzo  C.  Paige,  Gulian  C.Yerplanck, 
Alva  Hunt,  and  Erastus  Root.  The  State  was  then 
divided  into  eight  Senatorial  districts,  and  each  dis- 
trict was  entitled  to  four  Senators,  who  were  chosen 
for  four  years.  He  was  re-elected  to  the  same  position 
in  the  fall  of  1844,  and  successfully  occupied  it  until 
the  1st  of  January,  1848.  The  great  question  before 
the  people  of  the  State,  during  his  entire  term  of  ser- 


22 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


vice  in  that  body,  was  that  of  the  completion  of  the 
public  works,  and  during  most  of  the  time  he  held  the 
responsible  post  of  Chairman  of  the  standing  Com- 
mittee on  Canals.  He  has  always  been  friendly  to  the 
completion  of  the  canals,  but  throughout  his  entire 
legislative  career,  acted  upon  the  doctrine,  that  no 
work  should  be  undertaken  or  recognized  by  the  State, 
that  will  not,  when  completed,  sustain  itself,  pay  the 
interest  on  its  cost,  and  contribute  something  toward 
a sinking  fund  to  redeem  the  principal.  He  made  a 
report  in  the  Senate  on  the  21st  of  March,  1844,  which 
contained  an  extended  review  of  the  financial  opera- 
tions of  the  State,  in  regard  to  the  public  works,  and 
which,  at  once,  gave  him  a distinguished  reputation  as 
a man  of  superior  ability,  and  a thorough  knowledge 
of  his  subject. 

After  retiring  from  the  Senate,  Mr.  Denniston  re- 
mained quietly  at  home  on  his  farm,  until  the  fall  of 
1851,  when  he  was  nominated  by  the  Eepublican  State 
Convention,  at  Syracuse,  for  the  distinguished  place  he 
now  occupies.  Owing  to  some  disaffection,  however, 
in  the  ranks  of  his  party,  he  was  defeated.  Nothing 
was  then  again  heard  of  him  in  the  political  arena 
until  the  fall  of  1859,  when  he  was  renominated  as  a 
candidate  for  the  same  ofl&ce,  by  the  Eepublicans  in 
State  Convention.  He  was  subsequently,  likewise, 
nominated  for  the  same  position  by  the  American  State 
Convention  at  Utica,  and  was  elected  by  about  forty- 
nine  thousand  majority.  He  has  now  barely  just  en- 
tered upon  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his  new 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


23 


position  ; but  doubtless  possesses  qualities  which  fit 
him  well  for  their  prompt  and  faithful  fulfillment. 

In  politics;  he  was  educated  a Democrat  of  the  strict- 
est sect,  in  the  school  of  Silas  Wright,  A.  C.  Flagg, 
and  Michael  Hofiman,  and  in  the  progress  of  events, 
by  the  natural  bent  of  his  political  education,  has  be- 
come a Eepublican  of  the  Jeffersonian  stamp.  He  is 
shrewd  and  sagacious  ; an  ardent  and  zealous  politi- 
cian, and  indomitable  in  maintaining  and  defending 
his  principles,  and  in  the  pursuit  of  his  political  pro- 
jects. There  is  nothing  brilliant  or  ostentatious  in 
his  nature,  and  his  entire  course  through  life  has  been 
simply  that  of  a quiet,  straight-forward,  honest,  prac- 
tical farmer  and  statesman.  He  stands  well  in  the 
social  world,  being  kind  and  agreeable  in  his  personal 
intercourse  toward  all  with  whom  he  comes  in  contact, 
and  enjoys  a great  degree  of  personal,  as  well  as  polit- 
ical popularity,  wherever  he  is  known. 

Mr.  Denniston  was  married,  in  1824,  to  Juliana 
Howell,  who,  at  the  end  of  one  year  and  five  months, 
died,  leaving  him  childless.  He  was  again  married  in 
1832  to  Miss  Mary  Scott,  of  Elizabethtown,  New  Jer- 
sey,  by  whom  he  has  reared  eleven  children,  all  now 
living.  In  religion,  he  is  a New  School  Presbyterian. 


24 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


PHILIP  DOKSHEIMEE, 

TBEASURER. 

Mr.  Dorsheimer  is  a native  of  Wollstein,  in  the 
canton  of  Wollstein,  Department  of  Dondersberg, 
Germany.  He  was  born  on  the  15th  of  April,  HQt, 
and  is,  therefore,  in  the  sixty-third  year  of  his  age. 
His  father,  Wilhelm  Dorsheimer,  who  came  to  America 
in  1834,  died  in  Buffalo  in  1852,  at  the  good  old  age  of 
eighty-six,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Maria  Graemer,  died  in  Germany,  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
two.  His  parents  were  both  distinguished  for  their 
persevering  industry,  integrity,  and  real  moral  worth, 
and  died  lamented  by  a large  circle  of  sincere  and 
devoted  friends. 

Mr.  Dorsheimer  was  educated  in  the  common  schools 
of  his  native  place,  and  came  to  the  United  States  in 
1816.  He  first  settled  in  Dauphin  county,  Pennsyl- 
vania, where  he  resided  until  1822,  when  he  moved 
into  Wayne  county,  in  this  State.  In  1836  he  removed 
to  the  city  of  Buffalo,  where  he  has  always  since  been 
a resident.  His  chief  occupation,  since  arriving  at 
manhood,  has  been  that  of  milling,  though  since  his 
residence  in  Buffalo  he  has  been  some  years  success- 
fully engaged  in  keeping  a hotel.  His  business  quali- 
fications are  of  a high  order,  and  his  reputation  in  the 
latter  calling  is  altogether  unsurpassed  anywhere,  as 
any  one  who  has  had  occasion  to  stop  at  the  Mansion 
House  in  Buffalo  can  readily  testify.  The  first  public 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


25 


position  he  ever  held  was  that  of  post-master,  to  which 
he  was  appointed  under  the  administration  of  Presi- 
dent Van  Buren,  in  1838,  and  which  he  held  until 
1841.  He  was  re-appointed  to  the  same  office  in  1845, 
by  Mr.  Polk,  again  holding  the  position  until  July, 
1841,  when  he  was  peremptorily  dismissed,  in  conse- 
quence of  his  Freesoil  proclivities.  Up  to  that  period 
he  had  always  been  a Democrat,  of  the  old-fashioned 
school,  strenuously  advocating  the  principles  and 
policy  of  that  party,  under  all  circumstances  ; but  in 
the  Presidential  campaign  of  the  following  year,  he 
early  enlisted  in  the  ranks  of  the  supporters  of  the 
Buffalo  platform,  and  has  always  since  then  been  firm 
and  decided  in  his  adherence  to  the  doctrine  of  the 
right  and  duty  of  Congress  to  prohibit  slavery  in  the 
territories  of  the  United  States.  In  the  great  contest 
of  1852,  he  was  found  acting  with  the  friends  of  Mr. 
Pierce,  under  the  mistaken  impression  that  he  was 
thus  favoring  the  success  of  that  same  principle  ; but 
after  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  restriction,  he  was  one 
among  the  very  first  to  engage  in  the  organization  of 
the  Republican  party,  upon  that  distinctive  issue.  He 
remained  quietly  at  home,  contenting  himself  with  an 
honest  and  industrious  pursuit  of  his  own  private 
affairs,  after  his  dismissal  from  the  Post-office  depart- 
ment in  1847,  until  the  fall  of  1859,  when  he  was 
nominated  by  the  Republican  State  Convention,  at 
Syracuse,  as  a candidate  for  the  distinguished  office  he 
now  occupies.  He  was  afterwards  nominated  for  the 

same  position  by  the  American  State  Convention  at 
2 


26 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Utica,  and  was  elected  by  about  fifty  thousand  ma- 
jority, as  were,  also,  the  rest  of  his  colleagues,  with  a 
single  exception,  on  the  American  ticket. 

Mr.  Dorsheimer  possesses  a strong  native  vigor  of 
intellect,  combined  with  a high  degree  of  general 
intelligence,  and  is  doubtless  well  qualified  to  fulfill 
properly  the  duties  with  which  the  people  have  in- 
trusted him  in  the  administration  of  the  government. 
He  is  a man  of  liberal  views  and  feelings  on  all  ques- 
tions of  a private  or  public  character,  and  sustains 
an  enviable  reputation  wherever  he  is  known,  for  his 
uprightness  and  integrity  of  character,  his  congenial- 
ity of  temper  and  disposition,  and  his  unsurpassed 
combination  of  all  the  essential  elements  of  personal 
popularity.  His  habits  are  peculiarly  simple  and 
unpretending,  whether  as  a private  citizen  or  a public 
officer,  and  his  whole  appearance  is  calculated  to 
invite,  rather  than  discourage,  the  approach  of  the 
most  humble  individual.  He  devotes  himself  assidu- 
ously and  perseveringly  to  the  discharge  of  the  duties 
of  his  office,  seldom  being  found  absent  from  his  post, 
during  the  business  hours  of  the  day,  and  never  fails 
to  secure  the  good  opinion  of  all  with  whom  he  comes 
in  contact  in  his  official  capacity. 

Mr.  Dorsheimer  was  married  in  1821,  in  Dauphin 
county,  Pennsylvania,  to  Miss  Sarah,  daughter  of 
Joseph  Gorgas,  an  enterprising  farmer  of  that  county, 
and  attends  the  Unitarian  Church. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


2T 


CHAELES  G.  MYEES, 

ATTORNEY  GENERAL. 

Mr.  Myers  is  a farmer’s  son,  and  a native  of  the 
town  of  Madrid,  St.  Lawrence  county,  N.  Y.,  where 
he  was  born  in  the  year  1810.  His  paternal  ances- 
tors  were  originally  from  Germany,  and,  on  his  ma- 
ternal side,  he  is  supposed  to  be  of  Scotch  extrac- 
tion. His  parents,  who  were  also  natives  of  the 
State  of  New  York,  are  both  dead,  and  sustained  a 
high  reputation  for  honesty,  integrity,  and  real  moral 
worth,  during  the  entire  period  of  their  lives. 

Mr.  Myers  received  a classical  education,  at  the  St. 
Lawrence  Academy,  at  Potsdam,  in  his  native  county, 
an  institution  from  which  some  of  the  most  talented 
and  distinguished  men  in  the  country  have  graduated. 
After  leaving  school,  at  the  age  of  fifteen,  he  entered 
the  law  office  of  Governeur  Ogden,  at  Waddington, 
where,  with  an  interval  spent  at  Rochester,  he  pur- 
sued, for  seven  successive  years,  his  legal  studies,  with 
the  most  unremitting  attention  and  persevering  indus- 
try, and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1832.  In  the 
year  following,  he  commenced  the  practice  of  his 
profession,  in  the  village  of  Ogdensburgh,  St.  Law- 
rence county,  where  he  has  always  since  been  a 
prominent  and  successful  lawyer.  He  held  the  office 
of  Surrogate  of  that  county  some  four  years,  and  was 
elected  District  Attorney  at  the  first  election  under 
the  new  Constitution  of  1846.  This  position  he  held 


28 


BIOGRArmCAL  SKETCHES. 


six  years,  discharging  his  duties  with  considerable 
credit  to  himself,  as  well  as  entire  satisfaction  to  the 
great  body  of  the  people  of  the  county  ; and  in  the 
mean  time,  was  also  an  active,  efficient  member  of  the 
lower  branch  of  the  Legislature  of  1848.  After  the 
expiration  of  his  term  of  service  as  District  Attorney, 
he  never  again  occupied  any  conspicuous  public  place, 
until  the  fall  of  1859,  when  he  was  almost  unani- 
mously nominated  by  the  Republican  State  Convention 
at  Syracuse,  as  a candidate  for  the  distinguished 
position  of  Attorney  General  of  the  State.  He  was, 
subsequently,  likewise,  nominated  at  Utica,  by  the 
American  State  Convention,  which  made  out  a ticket 
composed  equally,  as  near  as  possible,  of  the  Demo- 
cratic and  Republican  State  tickets,  then  already  in 
the  field,  and  was  elected  by  a majority  of  over  forty 
thousand.  As  a politician,  he  has  never  been  am- 
bitious, though,  by  no  means,  an  indifierent  observer 
of  the  ordinary  course  of  political  events,  and  has 
always  been  reluctantly  drawn  from  the  walks  of 
private  life  and  the  quiet  pursuit  of  his  profession,  to 
fill  the  various  public  stations  to  which  he  has  been 
chosen. 

Mr.  Myers  was  formerly  a Democrat,  of  the  Silas 
Wright  stamp,  from  his  earliest  youth.  He  remained 
firmly  and  of  principle  attached  to  that  party  until 
1848,  when  he  had  the  pleasure  of  introducing  into 
the  Legislature  the  first  resolutions  ever  presented  to 
the  people  of  the  State  of  New  York,  in  favor  of  the 
right  and  duty  of  Congress  to  prohibit  the  introduc- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


29 


tion  of  slavery  into  the  territories  of  the  United  States. 
President  Polk,  in  his  annual  message,  at  the  previous 
opening  of  Congress,  had  asked  for  an  appropriation 
for  the  purchase  of  certain  territory,  at  the  close  of 
the  Mexican  war,  and  the  resolutions  in  question  pro- 
posed to  instruct  the  Representatives  of  this  State,  in 
Congress,  to  oppose  any  such  appropriation,  unless 
the  principle  of  the  celebrated  Wilmot  Proviso  was 
applied  to  the  territorial  government  of  the  proposed 
acquisition.  It  was  a new  question,  and  proved  to  be 
the  great  entering-wedge  in  the  creation  of  the  un- 
happy division  which  has  always  since  existed  in  the 
Democratic  ranks  ; but  their  author  urged  their  pass- 
age with  vigor  and  determination,  and  eventually  se- 
cured it  by  an  almost  unanimous  vote  in  both  Houses. 
Since  then,  Mr.  Myers  has  always  been  unyieldingly 
consistent  in  his  support  of  the  great  principle  in- 
volved in  his  resolutions  on  that  occasion,  and  when  it 
was  more  prominently  brought  before  the  country  by 
the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise,  he  was  one 
among  the  very  first  to  engage  in  the  organization  of 
the  Republican  party,  upon  the  basis  of  that  prin- 
ciple. He  looks  upon  the  new-fangled  idea  of  Popular 
Sovereignty  as  a popular  humbug, and  maintains 
that  Congress  has  the  exclusive  and  unconditional 
control  of  the  subject  of  Slavery  in  the  territories 
of  the  United  States. 

As  a lawyer,  Mr.  Myers  occupies  a prominent  posi- 
tion in  the  front  rank  of  his  profession.  He  is  a fine 
speaker,  combining  general  coolness  with  occasional 


30 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


excitability,  and  whether  before  the  court  or  a jury, 
acquits  himself  in  a manner  that  seldom  fails  to  secure 
him  his  point.  He  is  interesting,  agreeable,  and 
always  full  of  life  and  cheerfulness  in  private  conver- 
sation, and  is  affable,  gentlemanly,  and  highly  accom- 
plished in  his  manners.  He  is  a man  of  family,  and 
in  his  private  and  domestic  relations  is  respected  and 
esteemed.  In  person,  he  is  about  medium  size, 
with  intelligent  gray  eyes,  bushy  gray  hair,  English 
side  whiskers,  a broad,  prominent  forehead,  and  a 
florid  complexion,  which  suggests  a keen  relish  for 
all  the  creature  comforts  of  life. 


VAN  R.  RICHMOND, 

STATE  ENGINEER  AND  SURVEYOR. 

Mr.  Kichmond  was  born  in  January,  1812,  in  the 
town  of  Preston,  Chenango  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  the 
eldest  son  of  Oliver  Richmond,  a farmer  in  that  coun- 
ty, who  died  at  an  advanced  age,  in  1853.  He  received 
a good  practical  business  education  at  the  Oxford 
Academy,  in  Chenango  county,  and  as  early  as  1834, 
when  quite  a young  man,  received  from  the  State  the 
appointment  of  chainman  in  the  engineering  force  en- 
gaged upon  the  Chenango  Canal,  which  was  then  in 
process  of  construction.  Here  he  remained  until  1831, 
gradually  rising  in  point  of  rank,  when  he  was  ap- 
pointed Resident  Engineer  on  the  Erie  Canal,  and  was 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


31 


located  at  Lyons,  where  he  now  resides.  In  1842,  his 
location  was  changed  from  this  place  to  Syracuse, 
when  he  took  charge  of  the  entire  Middle  Division  of 
the  New  York  State  canals,  under  Jonas  Earll  and 
Daniel  P.  Bissell,  as  Canal  Commissioners.  In  1848^ 
he  resigned  this  position,  and  accepted  an  appointment 
on  the  Oswego  Railroad.  It  was  decided  about  this 
time,  by  the  Whig  Canal  Board,  to  run  an  independ- 
ent line  for  the  enlarged  canal  from  Jordan  to  the 
Cayuga  marshes  ; but  they  had  no  man  in  their  employ 
to  whom  they  felt  safe  in  intrusting  the  work,  and 
after  canvassing  the  merits  of  all  the  engineers  of  the 
State,  an  appointment  for  the  execution  of  the  task,  in 
a separate  capacity,  was  tendered  to  Mr.  Richmond. 
He  accepted,  and  immediately  entered  upon  the  work. 
He  submitted  a line  for  the  canal,  and  a plan  for  the 
aqueduct  across  the  Seneca  river,  which  were  adopt- 
ed, and  the  work  was  immediately  put  under  contract. 
This  aqueduct  is  doubtless  the  most  important  struc- 
ture on  the  Erie  Canal,  and  fittingly  attests  the  skill 
and  genius  of  its  originator. 

In  1850,  when  Mr.  Richmond  had  satisfactorily  ar- 
ranged the  plan  of  this  noble  piece  of  work  across  the 
Seneca  river,  he  resigned  his  position  to  take  the  ap- 
pointment of  Division  Engineer  of  the  Syracuse  and 
Rochester  Direct  Railroad,  in  which  capacity  he  was 
engaged  until  1852,  when,  at  the  instance  of  Wm.  J. 
McAlpine,  he  was  appointed  Division  Engineer  of  the 
Middle  Division  of  the  New  York  State  canals.  In  the 
fall  of  1853,  a Whig  Canal  Board  was  again  elected. 


32 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


including  the  Hon.  John  T.  Clark,  as  State  Engineer. 
As  Mr.  Eichmond  had  always  been  a Democrat,  strong 
efforts  were  made  to  accomplish  his  removal  ; but  Mr. 
Clark  refused  to  give  his  sanction  to  the  measure,  and 
he  was  retained — a circumstance  as  creditable  to  Mr. 
Clark  as  it  was  complimentary  to  Mr.  Richmond.  In 
the  winter  of  1856,  the  American  party  came  into  pos- 
session of  the  Canal  Board,  and  being  a Democrat,  he 
was  removed  from  office  for  the  first  and  only  time  in 
his  life.  Prom  that  period  he  lived  in  retirement  at  his 
home  in  Lyons,  until  he  was  nominated  for  the  distin- 
guished position  of  State  Engineer  and  Surveyor,  by 
the  Democratic  State  Convention  at  Syracuse,  in  the 
fall  of  1857,  and  triumphantly  elected.  Having  served 
his  full  term  of  two  years  in  this  new  position,  with 
marked  ability  and  entire  satisfaction  to  his  party,  and 
the  people  generally,  he  was  renominated  for  the  same 
office  by  the  Democratic  party  at  Syracuse,  and  the 
American  party  at  Utica,  in  the  fall  of  1859,  and  was 
again  triumphantly  elected. 

During  the  twenty  years  Mr.  Eichmond  has  been  in 
the  service  of  the  State  as  an  engineer,  he  has  proven 
himself  equal  to  any  in  industry,  integrity,  and  fidelity 
to  the  interests  of  the  people,  and  there  is  scarcely  one, 
perhaps,  in  the  State,  who  can  surpass  him  in  the  line 
of  his  profession.  He  is  well  calculated  to  adorn  the 
responsible  office  which  he  now  holds,  and  while  pre- 
venting, in  a great  measure,  the  fraud  and  corruption 
hitherto  too  often  practised  at  the  connivance  of  some 
of  his  predecessors,  he  has  made,  thus  far,  an  emi- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


33 


nently  honest  and  economical  disbursement  of  the 
public  moneys  falling  into  his  hands  for  the  prosecu 
tion  of  the  various  enterprises  connected  with  the 
great  canal  works  of  the  State. 

In  1831,  Mr.  Richmond  was  married  to  Miss  Anna 
A.  Dennison,  who  died  in  the  spring  of  1854,  and  by 
whom  he  has  three  children  living.  He  was  again 
married  in  1859,  and  is  a gentleman  of  superior  stand- 
ing in  all  the  relations  of  private  life.  In  person  he  is 
tall  and  slender,  though  having  the  indications  of  an 
ability  for  more  than  ordinary  physical  endurance  ; has 
light  hair,  light  blue  eyes,  fair  complexion,  and  a 
quick,  active  step,  denoting  a restless,  working  mind. 
He  is  one  of  the  rare  men  whom  dignity  and  fortune 
do  not  spoil. 


34 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


SENATORS. 


DAVID  H.  ABELL. 

Senator  Abell,  or,  as  he  is  popularly  known,  Farmer 
Abell,  is,  physically,  at  least,  one  of  the  most  attractive 
men  in  the  Senate.  He  is  a large,  robust  man,  stand- 
ing about  five  feet  ten  inches  in  his  broad-toed  boots, 
with  dark  hair,  partially  mixed  with  gray,  a face  sug- 
gesting the  high  order  of  conspirator  in  every  linea- 
ment, and  a general  air  of  deceptive  good-nature  and 
slyness,  which  seems  constantly  to  weigh  the  weakness 
of  all  other  men,  while  studiously  concealing  its  own 
purpose.  Like  all  ponderous  bodies,  he  moves  slowly, 
being  but  little  adapted  to  the  progressive  age  in 
which  we  live,  and  was,  doubtless,  born,  at  least,  one 
hundred  and  fifty  years  too  late.  He  is  a fast  liver, 
however,  falling,  with  characteristic  gusto, 

“ upon  whate’er  was  offered — like 

A priest,  a shark,  an  alderman,  or  pike," 

and  is  a perfect  walking  sepulchre  of  dead  geese  and 
turkeys. 

Senator  Abell  is  about  fifty-five  years  of  age,  and 
was  for  some  years  a resident  of  Genesee  county, 
N.  Y.,  before  removing  into  Livingston  county,  where 
he  now  resides.  He  possesses  some  education,  but 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


35 


his  character  has  received  its  brawn  and  sinew  from 
practice,  and  his  course  through  private  life  has  been 
simply  that  of  a quiet,  practical,  though  not  very  suc- 
cessful farmer.  Although  born  of  wild,  strong,  deter- 
mined kindred,  who  seem  from  old  to  have  lived  a life 
of  “ stub  and  strife,^^  and  in  a rank  of  life  just  suffi- 
ciently high  to  save  him  from  knowing  the  pangs  of 
want,  the  world-oyster  was  to  him  firmly  closed,  and 
it  has  been,  with  difficulty  only,  that  he  has  barely 
succeeded  in  opening  it.  He  is  not  troubled  with  the 
slightest  aversion  to  the  attractions  of  public  office  ; 
but  his  reputation  and  standing  at  home  would  never 
safely  justify  him  in  the  hope  of  success,  and  until  his 
election  to  the  present  Legislature,  he  never  held  any 
public  position  at  the  immediate  hands  of  the  people. 
His  name  was  sent  into  the  Senate  in  1847,  by  Gov- 
ernor Young,  as  a candidate  for  the  office  of  Canal 
Appraiser,  but  it  was  rejected  by  that  body,  and  laid 
over  until  the  succeeding  session  of  the  Legislature, 
when,  upon  the  renomination  of  Governor  Young,  he 
was  confirmed  for  that  position.  He  held  the  office 
until  1849,  and  the  only  distinguishing  mark  in  his 
entire  administration  was  his  gross  recreancy  to  Gov- 
ernor Young,  who  alone  had  secured  him  the  posi- 
tion. From  that  time  forward  he  became  identified 
with  the  extreme  anti-slavery  wing  of  the  Whig  party, 
and  is  now  politically  associated  with  such  men  as 
William  H.  Seward,  Orsamus  B.  Matteson,  Thurlow 
Weed,  James  Watson  Webb,  William  C.  Bryant,  John 
Jay,  Bans.  Van  Yalkenburgh,  and  Hinton  R.  Helper. 


36 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


He  cannot  at  all  be  regarded  as  a great  man  ; neither 
as  possessing  the  elements  of  greatness,  but  is  never- 
theless looked  upon  with  considerable  importance  in 
the  ranks  of  the  Republican  party,  although  really 
nothing  more  than  so  much  ballast,  to  keep  the  Repub- 
lican ship  erect,  in  heavy  weather,  in  the  absence  of 
her  legitimate  crew. 

But  Senator  Abell  has  attained  his  highest  distinc- 
tion in  the  lobby.  He  has  been  a prominent  member 
of  the  Third  House^^  for  many  years,  and  is  well 
known  for  the  tact  and  ingenuity  with  which  he  man- 
ages a lobby  speculation.  He  never  speaks  in  the 
Senate,  occupying  his  seat  constantly  like  a marble 
statue,  his  position  on  all  questions  being  thus  neces- 
sarily involved  in  extreme  uncertainty  until  the  very 
last  moment,  and  he  is  consequently  always  the  willing 
victim  of  all  manner  of  influences  and  importunities, 
on  the  side  of  all  parties,  until  the  ayes  and  noes  are 
called.  The  same  is  true  of  his  private  conduct,  and 
one  of  his  most  striking  and  peculiar  characteristics  is 
a happy  faculty  of  saying  nothing,  while  listening, 
with  pleased  attention,  to  all  that  others  may  volunteer. 
Too  long  a cultivator  of  the  soil  ever  to  be  successfully 
sleeked  down  into  the  smooth  drawing-room  gentle- 
man— rugged,  shaggy,  burly,  like  a rough-hewn 
statue  of  old  red  sandstone,  he  is  yet  possessed  of  a 
few  of  the  elements  of  personal  popularity,  among  a 
certain  class,  by  whom  he  is  familiarly  known  as 

High-ldw- J ack-in-the-Game.” 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


3T 


JAMES  A.  BELL. 

Senator  Bell  was  born  of  European  parentage,  in 
the  town  of  Hebron,  Washington  county,  N Y.,  on 
the  8th  of  February,  1814.  In  the  spring  of  1825, 
his  father,  George  Bell,  removed  into  Jefferson  county, 
and  settled  in  the  town  of  Brownville,  where  he 
resided  until  his  death,  in  December,  1841.  He  was 
a farmer  by  occupation,  and  a wife  and  three  sons  are 
now  the  only  surviving  members  of  his  family. 

At  the  age  of  seventeen,  Senator  Bell,  having 
received  a fair  English  education,  engaged  in  teach- 
ing, as  principal  of  a common  district  school,  assisting 
his  father  on  his  farm  during  the  summer,  and  teach- 
ing during  the  winter  months,  and  was  eminently 
successful  in  that  capacity.  In  1834,  when  that  part 
of  the  State  of  Michigan  was  yet  an  unbroken  wil- 
derness, he  was  one  of  a party  who  made  the  United 
States  survey  of  the  shores  of  Lake  Huron,  from  Fort 
Grattot  to  near  Mackinaw.  Having  returned  from  the 
West,  in  1836,  he  engaged  in  the  mercantile  business 
in  the  village  of  Brownville  ; but  soon  after  removed 
his  business  to  Dexter,  a new  village  being  built 
up  at  the  mouth  of  Black  river,  and  at  the  head  of 
navigation  from  Lake  Ontario.  To  the  business  of 
general  merchandising,  under  the  firm  name  of  J.  A. 
Bell  & Co.,  of  which  Col.  Edmund  Kirby  was  an  equal 
partner,  he  added  the  business  of  vessel-building, 
storage,  and  forwarding,  in  which  he  continued  until 
the  decease  of  Col.  Kirby  in  1849,  since  which  time 


33 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


his  operations  have  been  mainly  confined  to  the  pur- 
chase and  sale  of  merchandise,  and  the  disposal  of 
the  vessels  and  the  joint  property  of  the  above-men- 
tioned firm. 

Although  not  ambitious  of  political . preferment, 
choosing  rather  to  devote  his  time  and  attention  to 
business,  Senator  Bell  has  held  various  oflSces  of  re- 
sponsibility and  trust.  He  was  postmaster  during  the 
administrations  of  Presidents  Taylor  and  Fillmore,  and 
held  the  position  of  Supervisor  of  the  town  of  Brown- 
ville  during  the  years  1857  and  ^58.  He  was  appoint- 
ed for  two  terms,  by  the  Board  of  Supervisors  of  his 
county,  to  the  post  of  Inspector  of  the  Poor-House 
and  Insane  Asylum,  and,  as  we  see  by  the  ofBcial  list 
of  the  county,  now  holds  the  office  of  Coroner.  He 
was  always  an  ardent  and  enthusiastic  admirer  of 
Henry  Clay,  and  until  after  the  presidential  campaign 
of  1840,  acted  as  if  he  believed  the  whole  salvation  of 
the  country  depended  upon  the  success  of  the  old 
Whig  party.  Subsequent  developments,  however, 
greatly  impaired  his  confidence  in  the  then  existing 
political  organizations,  and  although  not  wholly  aban- 
doning his  distinctive  protective  tariff  principles,  he 
directed  his  energies  more  particularly  to  the  restric- 
tion of  the  evils  of  intemperance  and  the  further  ex- 
tension of  slavery.  Impressed  with  these  views,  his 
mind  was  fully  prepared  for  early  and  active  efforts  in 
the  formation  of  the  Republican  party,  from  which  ho 
has  mainly  received  all  the  political  distinction  he  has 
thus  far  enjoyed.  He  received  the  nomination  last 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


39 


fall  for  the  seat  he  now  fills  in  the  Senate,  without 
any  efibrt  whatever  on  his  part,  by  the  Senatorial 
Convention  at  Carthage,  composed  of  delegates  from 
the  counties  of  Lewis  and  Jefferson,  while  his  com- 
petitors for  the  nomination,  the  Hon.  Calvin  Little- 
field, of  Jefferson,  and  the  Hon.  Lyman  R.  Lyon,  of 
Lewis,  had  made  the  most  persevering  efforts  to  secure 
the  distinction.  The  official  returns  show  his  election 
by  a majority  of  more  than  twenty-two  hundred  over 
his  opponent,  Harrison  Blodgett,  who,  although  the 
Democratic  candidate,  had  Whig  and  American  ante- 
cedents. He  is  very  quiet  and  unassuming  in  the  dis- 
charge of  his  official  duties,  but  wields  a strong  influ- 
ence in  the  Senate,  and  has  proved  himself  a capable 
and  efficient  legislator. 

Senator  Bell  was  married  in  1840  to  Miss  Wood, 
second  daughter  of  James  Wood,  who  lived  only 
eighteen  days  after  their  marriage.  He  was  after- 
wards married  on  the  16th  day  of  December,  1841, 
to  his  present  wife.  Miss  Rachel  P.  Smith,  a native  of 
Bucks  county,  Pennsylvania,  by  whom  he  has  had  two 
children.  He  united,  at  an  early  age,  with  the  Pres- 
byterian Church,  of  which  his  parents  were  consistent 
members,  and  to  establish  and  sustain  this  branch  of 
the  Christian  Church,  a Union  Sabbath-school,  and 
several  other  moral  and  benevolent  objects  in  Dexter, 
he  has  been  obliged  to  bear  heavy  burdens  and  make 
great  sacrifices  of  time  and  money.  No  doubt,  how- 
ever, these  self-denials  have  qualified  him  for  higher 
comfort  and  greater  usefulness  in  the  future. 


40 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ISAIAH  BLOOD. 

Senator  Blood  was  born  on  the  13th  of  February, 
1810,  in  the  town  of  Ballston,  Saratoga  county,  N.  Y. 
He  is  of  English  descent,  and  his  ancestors  emigrated 
to  Massachusetts  as  far  back  as  the  sixteenth  century. 
Both  his  parents  are  still  living,  in  Ballston,  Saratoga 
county.  His  father,  Sylvester  Blood,  was  born  in 
1785,  and  his  mother,  Loretta  Robertson,  in  1787. 
Hosea  Blood,  his  uncle,  was  a celebrated  surgeon  in 
the  United  States  army,  and  distinguished  himself 
at  Tippacanoe,  under  General  Harrison.  He  was 
severely  wounded  at  HulPs  disgraceful  surrender  at 
Detroit,  and  died  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri,  while  in  the 
United  States  service,  in  1816. 

Having  a large  family  of  children,  of  whom  Isaiah 
was  the  oldest.  Senator  Blood^s  father  took  him,  at  the 
age  of  twelve,  from  the  district  school,  which  was  the 
only  school  he  ever  attended,  and  educated  him  for  the 
manufacture  of  scythes,  in  which  business  he  had 
gained  no  small  degree  of  celebrity.  His  works  being 
small,  however,  and  his  water-power  limited,  in  1823 
he  built  a new  manufactory  on  the  Kayaderosseras 
creek,  in  the  town  of  Milton,  Saratoga  county,  and 
in  1833  associated  his  son  Isaiah  with  him  in  busi- 
ness. The  Senator  then  purchased  his  father’s  inter- 
est in  the  business  in  1836,  and  having  enlarged  the 
work,  has  continued  to  enlarge  and  increase  his  facili- 
ties for  the  manufacture  of  scythes.  In  1853  he 
erected  an  extensive  establishment  for  the  manufac- 


BIOGRAPHIC  A.L  SKETCHES. 


41 


ture  of  axes  and  other  edge  tools,  which,  together  with 
his  scythe  establishment,  is  now  in  successful  opera- 
tion, employing  a large  number  of  men  and  master- 
mechanics.  The  little  settlement  in  which  he  now 
resides  bears  his  own  name,  Bloodville,  and  contains 
several  hundred  inhabitants. 

Senator  Blood  made  his  first  entrance  into  public 
life  as  a Supervisor  of  the  town  in  which  he  lives,  and 
still  occupies  that  position.  In  1852  he  was  chosen  a 
representative  in  the  lower  branch  of  the  Legislature, 
where  he  discharged  his  duties  with  credit  to  himself 
and  material  advantage  to  his  district ; and  now 
comes  to  the  Senate,  by  a handsome  majority,  as  the 
successor  in  that  body  of  Judge  Scott,  of  Saratoga 
county,  one  of  the  most  substantial  and  useful  mem- 
bers of  the  last  and  preceding  Legislature.  He  has 
always  been  a Democrat  of  the  good  old  Andrew  Jack- 
son  school,  and  although  more  of  a business  man  than 
a politician,  has  never  failed  to  strenuously  advo- 
cate the  principles  and  policy  of  that  party.  He  is  an 
accurate,  industrious  business  man,  of  strict  integrity, 
and  a high-toned  moral  character  ; and  fulfills  the 
duties  of  his  position  quietly  and  unostentatiously, 
though  with  an  eye  single  to  the  best  interests  of 
every  section  of  the  entire  State, 

In  person.  Senator  Blood  is  a man  above  the  medium 
size,  being  somewhat  robust  and  substantially  built, 
and  has  thin  light-gray  hair,  with  intelligent  blue  eyes, 
and  a good-natured,  fresh,  smooth  face,  which  indicates 
permanent  good  health  and  a warm-hearted,  generous 


42 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


nature.  He  possesses  superior  social  qualities,  and 
his  uniform,  genial,  frank  way  never  fails  to  create  an 
attachment  for  him  in  the  bosoms  of  all  with  whom  he 
comes  in  contact.  He  is  not  only  the  representative, 
but  the  gentleman,  and  the  two  combined  render  him 
especially  successful  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties, 
both  upon  the  floor  of  the  Senate,  and  on  the  various 
committees  of  which  he  is  a member  in  that  body. 

He  was  married  in  1831,  to  Miss  Jane  E.  Gates,  of 
Ballslon,  by  whom  he  has  one  daughter,  Helen,  who, 
in  1851,  became  the  wife  of  Henry  Knickerbocker,  of 
Schaghticoke,  Eensselaer  county,  N.  Y. 


ANDEEW  J.  COLYIK 

Senator  Colvin  was  born  on  the  30th  of  April,  1808, 
in  the  town  of  Coeymans,  Albany  county,  N.  Y.  He 
is  the  only  surviving  child  of  the  late  James  Colvin, 
an  energetic  and  industrious  farmer,  who  was  also  a 
native  of  that  town,  and  who  died  in  1846,  in  the  town 
of  Bethlemen,  in  the  same  county.  His  paternal  grand- 
father, John  Colvin,  who  was  a member  of  the  lower 
branch  of  the  New  York  Legislature  in  the  year  1810, 
came  from  Scotland,  during  the  early  settlement  of 
this  country,  and  located  in  the  town  of  Coeymans, 
where  he  was  an  active  and  successful  farmer  up  to 
the  time  of  his  death.  His  maternal  grandfather, 
John  Verplanck,  who  was  one  of  the  four  original 
owners  of  Coeymans^  Patent,  and  whose  ancestors 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


43 


came  from  Holland,  and  settled  at  Yerplanck’s  Point, 
on  the  Hudson  river,  was  also  born  in  the  town  of 
Coeymans,  and  lived  there  during  his  entire  life-time. 

Senator  Colvin  received  a classical  education  at  the 
Albany  Academy,  and  in  1824  entered  the  law  office 
of  ex-President  Van  Buren  and  the  Hon.  Benjamin 
P.  Butler,  who  were  then  in  co-partnership  in  the  city 
of  Albany,  although  the  former  had  substantially  with- 
drawn from  the  profession,  in  consequence  of  his  being 
then  a member  of  the  Senate  of  the  United  States. 
Here  he  remained,  pursuing  his  legal  studies,  with 
marked  industry  and  attention,  until  duly  admitted  to 
the  bar,  when  he  at  once  entered  upon  the  practice  of 
the  law,  with  the  most  flattering  indications  of  future 
eminent  success.  During  the  year  1842,  he  was  Attor- 
ney for  the  Corporation  of  the  city  of  Albany,  and  was 
the  last  District  Attorney  of  Albany  county,  under  the 
old  constitution  of  1821,  having  been  appointed  to  that 
position  by  the  Court  of  General  Sessions,  in  March, 
1846,  and  holding  it  until  the  1st  of  January,  1848, 
when  the  new  constitution  of  1846  went  into  effect. 
He  was  again  District  Attorney  for  three  years,  from 
the  1st  of  January,  1851,  having  succeeded  to  the  posi- 
tion at  the  election  in  the  fall  of  the  previous  year,  as  the 
candidate  of  the  Democratic  party  ; and  during  his  entire 
career  of  official  service,  discharged  all  his  duties  with 
distinguished  ability  and  success.  He  occupies  a high 
position  as  a lawyer  throughout  Albany  and  the  ad- 
joining counties,  and  is  well  and  favorably  known 
throughout  the  entire  circle  of  his  associates  at  the 


44 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


bar,  for  the  untiring*  industry  and  superior  ability  with 
which  he  discharges  every  professional  duty  devolving 
upon  him.  He  is  a fine  speaker,  rarely  failing  to 
advance  directly  to  the  real  point  in  controversy, 
which  he  always  discusses  calmly  and  dispassionately, 
though  clearly  and  distinctly,  and  has  been  especially 
successful  in  the  efforts  he  has  made  before  a jury. 

Although  always  a firm  and  consistent  adherent  of 
the  Democratic  party.  Senator  Colvin  has  never 
become  prominent  as  a politician,  in  the  ordinary 
acceptation  of  that  term.  He  has  always  been  too 
high-toned  in  his  individual  and  professional  character 
for  this,  and  has  never  exhibited  any  signs  of  a dispo- 
sition to  excel  in  any  thing  but  the  honest  and  suc- 
cessful pursuit  of  his  profession.  He  was  put  forward 
as  the  candidate  of  the  Democratic  party,  for  the  posi- 
tion he  now  occupies  in  the  Senate,  without  any 
solicitation  whatever  on  his  part,  and  was  elected  by 
a handsome  majority  over  the  combined  forces  of 
almost  the  entire  opposition  in  his  district.  Notwith- 
standing, however,  his  evident  distaste  for  the  turmoil 
and  strife  usually  consequent  upon  the  political  cha- 
racter of  our  legislative  assemblies,  he  will  no  doubt 
discharge  honestly  and  faithfully  each  and  every  obli- 
gation pertaining  to  the  position  which  he  now  occupies 
before  the  people  of  the  Empire  State. 

Senator  Colvin  is  the  head  of  an  interesting  family, 
and  is  now  living  with  his  second  wife,  who  is  the 
daughter  of  the  late  Prudden  Ailing,  of  Newark,  New 
Jersey,  and  who  is  a sister  of  his  first  wife.  He  is  a 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


46 


member  of  St.  Peter^s  Church,  in  the  city  of  Albany, 
and  occupies  a deservedly  high  position,  in  all  tho 
social  and  domestic  relations  of  life.  In  person,  he  is 
tall  and  somewhat  slender,  with  black  hair  and  beard, 
and  has  a piercing  black  eye  of  unusual  force  and 
brilliancy.  His  complexion  is  sallow,  showing  a some- 
what disordered  state  of  his  physical  condition,  but  his 
strongly-marked  features,  and  calm,  dignified  counte- 
nance, indicate  at  once  a high  order  of  intellect  and 
an  untiring  and  laborious  disposition. 


KICHARD  B.  CONNOLLY. 

Senator  Connolly  is  a native  of  old  Ireland — the 
land  of  soldiers,  poets,  and  orators,  and  is  about  forty- 
five  years  of  age.  He  came  to  the  city  of  New  York, 
where  he  has  always  since  resided,  in  1826,  being  then 
only  about  fourteen  years  of  age,  with  high  health 
and  spirits,  and  a moderately  good  education.  In 
fact,  he  was  a promising,  bright,  good-looking  boy, 
with  great  quickness  and  aptitude  for  study,  as  well 
as  the  acquirement  of  business  knowledge  ; and  soon 
after  his  arrival  in  America,  was  taken  into  the  well- 
known  and  popular  auction-house  of  John  Haggerty 
& Sons.  He  remained  with  this  firm  some  eight  or  ten 
years,  making  rapid  and  steady  progress  in  his  know- 
ledge of  the  business  and  good  opinion  of  his  employ- 


46 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ers,  and  at  the  end  of  that  time  went  into  the  employ- 
ment of  Simeon  Draper,  who  valued  him  very  highly, 
and  set  a great  store  upon  him. 

Long  before  becoming  a voter,  Senator  Connolly 
took  a deep  interest  in  politics,  and  began  to  play  an 
active  part.  He  has  always  been  a straight-forward 
' and  consistent  Democrat,  of  the  Jeffersonian,  conser- 
vative school,  and  has  thus  made  his  politics  as  much 
a matter  of  faith  as  of  profession,  believing  that,  unless 
a man^s  heart,  as  well  as  his  head,  is  in  his  work,  he  is 
very  apt  to  fly  the  track  now  and  then,  and  forsake 
the  long  road  of  principle  for  some  of  the  short  cuts  of 
expediency.  He  was  sent  as  a delegate  to  the  Young 
Men^s  General  Committee,  and  also  to  several  nomi- 
nating conventions  at  Tammany  Hall,  as  early  as 
1836.  In  1839  and  1840  he  was  elected  and  served  as 
Secretary  of  the  Committee,  and  in  1846  was  made  its 
Chairman.  He  soon  became  one  of  the  leading  spirits 
of  the  “Old  Seventh,’’  serving  as  its  constant  repre- 
sentative in  the  party  councils  and  conventions,  and 
in  1845  was  rewarded  for  his  exertions.  Cornelius  W. 
Lawrence  was  Collector  of  the  Port  at  that  time,  and 
appointed  him  to  a clerkship  in  the  Custom  House. 
Subsequently  he  was  placed  at  the  head  of  the  statis- 
tical bureau  in  that  establishment,  and  while  in  that 
position  was  one  of  the  three  gentlemen  chosen  by 
the  Collector  to  make  up  and  revise  the  tariff  of  1846, 
which  was  successfully  prosecuted,  under  the  auspices 
of  the  Hon.  Robert  J.  Walker. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


47 


In  1849  Senator  Connolly  left  the  Nassau  street 
White  House,”  that  plague  of  Presidents  and  para- 
dise of  disinterested  patriots,  and  through  the  influ- 
ence of  Mayor  Havemeyer,  and  other  influential  Demo- 
cratic friends,  was  appointed  discount  clerk  in  the 
Bank  of  North  America.  He  then  held  this  position 
until  the  Democracy  nominated  him  for  County  Clerk 
in  1852.  His  opponent  in  the  contest  was  George  W. 
Riblet ; but  although  the  campaign  was  spirited,  Mr. 
Connolly  was  triumphantly  elected  by  over  eleven 
thousand  majority.  During  his  term  of  service  in  this 
position,  he  discharged  his  duties  so  well  and  satisfac- 
torily to  his  party  and  fellow-citizens  generally,  that 
he  was  renominated  and  elected  in  1855,  by  an  in- 
creased majority  of  over  flfteen  thousand.  In  speak- 
ing of  his  renomination,  the  Sunday  Dispatch^  an 
opposition  paper,  of  Nov.  4,  1855,  held  the  following 
language : 

The  entire  unanimity  with  which  all  sections  of 
the  Democratic  party  have  greeted  the  nomination  of 
Mr.  Richard  B.  Connolly  to  the  office  of  County  Clerk, 
now  held  by  him,  augurs  well  for  that  gentlemaids 
success  on  Tuesday  next.  Having  discharged  the 
duties  of  the  office  for  three  years  acceptably  to  his 
party  friends,  and  with  satisfaction  to  those  having  busi- 
ness with  him,  Mr.  Connolly  stands  in  a very  fair 
position  before  the  people,  and  is  almost  certain  of 
coming  out  of  the  canvass  far  ahead  of  any  of  his 
opponents.  In  both  the  Hard  and  Soft  conventions  he 
met  with  a nearly  unanimous  vote,  which  of  course 


48 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


secured  his  cordial  indorsement  by  the  halfs,  without 
a dissenting  voice.  The  united  Democracy,  therefore, 
say  that  he  shall  be  re-elected  ; and  the  Democracy, 
when  thoroughly  united,  are  generally  able  to  back 
up  their  assertions,  at  the  polls,  on  election  day.’’ 

After  his  retirement  from  office,  the  New  York  Day 
Book,  of  the  22d  of  December,  1848,  spoke  of  him  as 
follows  : 

“ In  a few  days  our  present  popular  County  Clerk 
will  retire  from  office,  and  we  only  give  utterance  to 
the  general  sentiment,  when  we  say  that  no  man  has 
ever  left  that  office  with  more  friends  or  a wider  circle 
of  admirers  than  he.  By  his  uniform  courtesy,  and 
by  the  strict  and  careful  discharge  of  all  the  duties  of 
his  office,  he  made  himself  universally  popular  among 
those  who  have  had  occasion  to  do  business  with  his 
office.  Particularly  is  this  the  case  among  the  legal 
profession,  who  all  unite  in  ascribing  to  the  County 
Clerk’s  office  first-rate  regulations  during  Mr.  Con- 
nolly’s regimeP 

At  the  last  election,  he  was  brought  forward  by  the 
Democrats  of  the  Seventh  District  with  great  una- 
nimity, for  the  position  he  now  occupies  in  the  Senate, 
and  was  triumphantly  elected  over  Daniel  D.  Conover, 
the  Eepublican  candidate,  by  about  three  thousand 
majority.  He  possesses  a high  degree  of  intelligence 
and  representative  ability,  and  is  strictly  honest, 
straight-forward,  faithful,  and  impartial  in  the  dis- 
charge of  all  his  legislative  duties. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


49 


Since  his  first  entrance  into  political  life,  Senator 
Connolly  has  been  especially  distinguished  for  his 
extraordinary  vitality  and  unceasing  activity.  In 
the  Democratic  General  Committee  he  has  been  among 
the  most  active  workers,  and  so  also  in  the  Tammany 
Society,  of  which  he  has  been  twice  elected  a Sachem. 
He  constantly  represented  the  Seventh  Ward  in  Tam- 
many and  at  Syracuse,  but  is  now  a resident  of  the 
Twenty-first  Ward,  where  he  exercises  his  usual  abil- 
ity and  influence  in  every  thing  of  a local  character. 
His  knowledge  of  human  nature  is  almost  perfect,  and 
but  few  men  have  ever  been  greater  favorites  with  all 
classes.  In  enabling  him  to  command  this  favor, 
nature  has  been  no  step-mother  to  him,  for  she  has 
given  him  a good  presence,  a handsome,  good-natured 
face,  with  brown  hair  and  brilliant  dark-blue  eyes,  and 
a manly  air  of  ease  and  kindness,  which  wins  him 
golden  opinions  among  all  classes  of  people,  without 
scarcely  any  effort  on  his  own  part. 

Senator  Connolly  is  a married  man,  and  has  an  amia- 
ble and  interesting  family,  of  which  he  is  justly  proud. 
In  short,  whether  as  a party  man,  a business  man,  a 
family  man,  or  a political  leader,  few  men  can  be  found 
combining  so  many  qualities  of  success  as  Richard  B. 
Connolly. 


50 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


WILLIAM  H.  FERRY. 

Senator  Ferry  is  readily  recognized,  as  he  sits 
among  his  Senatorial  compeers,  by  his  fine  personal 
appearance.  He  is  somewhat  above  the  medium  height, 
with  a gracefully-formed  body,  very  black  hair  and 
eyes,  a face  which  seems  to  have  always  been  uncon- 
scious of  a razor,  and  a business-like  expression  of 
countenance  which  promises  more  than  his  real  ability 
will  perhaps  justify.  His  career  in  life  has  not  been 
distinguished  by  any  variation  from  that  of  the  great 
bulk  of  the  business  men  of  our  country  ; and  although 
for  some  years  quite  active  and  influential  in  the  local 
politics  of  his  own  city  and  county,  it  remains  to  be 
seen  whether  he  will  make  his  mark  as  a representa- 
tive man  in  the  legislative  councils  of  the  State. 

Senator  Ferry  is  a native  of  the  county  of  Oneida, 
N.  Y.,  and  was  born  in  1819.  He  is  descended  from 
Dutch,  English,  and  Irish  stock.  His  father,  who  was 
a business  man  of  superior  capacity,  died  in  the  city 
of  Utica,  in  1856,  at  the  age  of  sixty-nine,  and  his 
mother  died  in  Herkimer  county  in  1842,  at  the  age  of 
forty-six.  His  education  was  received  chiefly  in  the 
common  schools  of  his  native  place,  though  he  passed 
some  time  at  Amherst  College,  and  was  educated  prin- 
cipally with  a view  to  commercial  pursuits.  He  was 
subsequently  successfully  engaged  in  the  banking  and 
manufacturing  business,  but  is  now  wholly  retired 
from  active  employment.  He  has  held  the  position  of 
Alderman  and  Supervisor  in  the  city  of  Utica,  where 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


51 


he  now  resides,  and  was  elected  to  the  seat  he  now 
occupies  in  the  Senate  by  a large  majority.  In  poli- 
tics, he  was  formerly  a Whig,  but  his  Freesoil  proclivi- 
ties soon  led  him  into  the  Republican  ranks  at  the 
organization  of  that  party.  He  is  a staunch  and  sub- 
servient friend  of  the  railroads  of  the  State,  steadily 
opposing  every  thing  that  is  calculated  to  abridge  the 
rights  and  privileges  they  now  enjoy,  and  had  the  full 
and  unrestrained  benefit  of  all  the  railroad  influence 
when  a candidate  for  the  position  he  now  holds.  He 
is  no  speaker,  although  talking  a great  deal,  and  is 
discursive  and  almost  limitless  in  his  advocacy  of  the 
great  railroad  system  of  the  State.  He  has  a heavy, 
coarse,  unpleasant  voice,  which  sounds  as  though  it 
came  from  the  soles  of  his  feet,  and  is  always  tedious, 
uninteresting,  and  not  very  distinct  in  his  remarks. 

Senator  Ferry  is  a man  of  family,  having  married 
Miss  M.  A.  Williams,  some  years  since,  and  attends  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  He  maintains  a high  social 
position  in  the  community  in  which  he  resides,  and  is 
said  to  enjoy  considerable  personal  popularity. 


JOSHUA  FIERO,  Je. 

Senator  Fiero  is  a native  of  the  then  town  of  Broom, 
now  the  town  of  Conesville,  Schoharie  county,  N.  Y., 
and  was  born  on  the  4th  of  May,  1818.  He  is  a de- 
scendant of  genuine,  unmixed  Knickerbocker  stock, 


52 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


though  it  is  supposed  that  his  paternal  ancestors,  who 
took  an  active  part  in  the  early  settlement  of  New 
York,  were  originally  from  Italy.  When  only  about 
nine  years  of  age,  he  went  to  Saugerties,  Ulster  coun- 
ty, N.  Y.,  to  live  with  his  uncle,  Joshua  Fiero,  who, 
having  no  sons,  at  once  adopted  him  as  his  own,  and 
with  whom  he  remained  until  about  the  time  he  had 
attained  his  majority.  During  his  younger  days,  he 
attended  a common  district  school,  and  in  1838  and  ^39, 
was  a student  at  the  academy  in  Malden,  Ulster 
county,  with  a view  of  fitting  himself  for  one  of  the 
learned  professions.  He  soon,  however,  wholly  aban- 
doned this  idea,  and  on  the  12th  of  March,  1840, 
became  a clerk  in  the  dry-goods  establishment  of  H. 
H.  Hyde,  in  the  village  of  Catskill,  Greene  county, 
N.  Y.  Here  he  remained,  fulfilling  the  duties  of  his 
new  position  with  credit  to  himself  and  entire  satisfac- 
tion to  his  employer,  until  the  28th  of  July,  1842  ; and 
on  the  13th  of  April,  1843,  he  embarked,  with  a small 
capital,  in  the  mercantile  trade  on  his  own  responsi- 
bility. From  that  time  to  this,  he  has  occupied  the 
position  of  an  enterprising  and  successful  merchant  in 
the  village  of  Catskill,  and  has  acquired  the  reputation 
of  being  one  of  the  most  accurate,  industrious,  and 
successful  business  men  in  the  county  of  Greene. 
Strict  integrity  and  honesty  of  purpose  have  always , 
been  a marked  characteristic  of  all  his  business  trans- 
actions, and  it  is  said,  as  an  evidence  of  the  faithful- 
ness with  which  he  has  discharged  all  his  business 
obligations,  that  he  has  never  yet,  throughout  his  en- 
tire business  career,  had  one  of  his  notes  protested. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


53 


He  had,  for  some  time,  a branch  mercantile  establish" 
ment  in  the  city  of  Auburn,  and  one  in  the  village  of 
Leeds,  Greene  county  ; but  from  1843  to  the  present 
time,  he  has  had  an  establishment  in  successful  opera- 
tion in  the  village  of  Catskill,  where  he  has  always 
since  been  a permanent  resident. 

Senator  Piero  may  be  said  to  have  made  his  first 
entrance  into  public  life  in  1840,  when  he  occupied  the 
position  of  Major  in  the  cavalry  department  of  the 
military  force  of  his  native  State.  He  was  also  Adju- 
tant of  the  Twenty-eighth  Eegiment,  in  1854,  but  re- 
signed the  place  in  the  following  year,  and  thenceforth 
devoted  his  exclusive  time  and  attention  to  his  busi- 
ness, until  the  fall  of  1853,  when  he  w’as  the  success- 
ful Whig  candidate,  in  his  district,  for  a seat  in  the 
lower  house  of  the  Legislature.  During  the  session 
that  followed,  he  was  Chairman  of  the  Select  Commit- 
tee, appointed  to  answer  the  special  message  of  Gov. 
Seymour  to  that  body,  vetoing  the  Prohibitory  Liquor 
Bill,  and  was  found  faithful  and  conscientious  in  the 
discharge  of  all  his  legislative  duties.  In  politics,  he 
was  originally  a staunch  Whig,  of  the  Henry  Clay 
school,  but  was  one  among  the  first  to  enlist  in  the 
Republican  movement  at  the  organization  of  that  par- 
ty. He  has  never  been  a politician — always,  most 
emphatically,  a business  man,  possessing  an  extensive 
stock  of  general  knowledge,  and  is  thoroughly  ac- 
quainted with  the  political  history  of  the  country,  and 
her  civil  and  religious  institutions.  He  was  married 
on  the  28th  of  July,  1842,  to  Miss  Mary  F.,  only  daugh- 


54 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ter  of  William  Pierson,  then  Clerk  of  Greene  county, 
and  is  a member  and  trustee  'of  the  Presbyterian 
branch  of  the  Church. 

Senator  Piero  is  a man  of  medium  height,  and  has  a 
stout,  muscular  body.  He  has  a heavy  head  of  light- 
brown  hair,  blue  eyes,  heavy,  light-brown  whiskers, 
and  a substantial,  business-like  face,  which  indicates 
great  firmness  and  decision  of  character,  and  strong 
native  strength  of  the  intellectual  faculties.  He  is 
faithful  and  industrious  in  the  discharge  of  his  Sena- 
torial duties,  and  is,  both  personally  and  politically, 
popular  inside  as  well  as  outside  of  the  Senate. 


THOMAS  A.  GAKDINEK. 

Senator  Gardiner  is  the  son  of  a New  York  mer- 
chant, and  was  born  in  that  city  on  the  2d  of  August, 
1832.  He  removed,  with  his  parents,  to  Brooklyn,  in 
1840,  and  has  always  since  been  a resident  of  that 
city.  His  mother  was  also  a native  of  the  city  of 
New  York,  but  his  father,  George  W.  Gardiner,  who 
died  in  January,  1852,  came  from  Ireland,  when  quite 
young. 

Senator  Gardiner  was  educated  at  a private  select 
school  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  and  has  always  been 
chiefly  engaged  in  the  manufacturing  business.  Dur- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


55 


ing  the  great  pecuniary  panic  in  185t,  he  was  con- 
nected with  the  Post-office  department  in  that  city, 
but  abandoned  the  position  as  soon  as  business  had 
again  revived.  His  first  entrance  into  public  life  was 
in  the  fall  of  1858,  when  he  was  brought  forward  by 
the  Democrats  of  the  Fourth  Assembly  District  of 
Kings  county,  as  a candidate  for  the  lower  branch  of 
the  Legislature,  and  was  triumphantly  elected  by 
nearly  one  thousand  majority.  During  his  official  term 
of  service  in  that  body,  he  was  an  influential  member 
of  the  standing  Committee  on  Trade  and  Manufactures, 
and  was  industrious,  honest,  and  faithful  in  the  dis- 
charge of  all  his  representative  duties.  So  well 
pleased,  indeed,  were  his  political  friends  and  constit- 
uents with  his  legislative  career  at  Albany,  that  he 
was  placed  in  the  field  at  the  opening  of  the  political 
campaign  in  the  fall  of  1859,  with  unusual  unanimity, 
as  a candidate  for  the  seat  he  now  holds  in  the  Senate, 
and  his  nomination  was  heartily  indorsed  by  the 
people  of  his  district  at  the  polls.  There  is  nothing 
of  the  old  fogy  about  him  ; and  although  one  of  the 
youngest  men  in  the  Senate,  there  are  but  few  mem- 
bers of  that  body  who  are  more  quiet,  industrious, 
and  agreeable  in  the  fulfillment  of  their  official  duties. 

In  politics,  Senator  Gardiner,  like  his  father  before 
him,  has  always  been  a Democrat  of  the  old  Andrew 
Jackson  style.  He  has  always  been  active  and  in- 
dustrious in  his  devotion  to  the  principles  and  policy 
of  that  party,  and  occupies  a firm  position  on  the 
Cincinnati  platform.  His  views  on  all  the  great 


56 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


questions  of  the  day  are  intensely  national  and 
conservative,  and  he  regards  the  doctrine  of  Congres* 
sional  sovereignty,  as  advocated  by  the  Eepublican 
party,  as  a palpable  violation  of  the  sovereign  rights 
of  the  people,  whom  he  considers  fully  capable,  both 
in  the  States  and  Territories,  of  regulating  their 
domestic  institutions  in  their  own  way,  subject  only 
to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States. 

Senator  Gardiner  is  a member  of  the  Eoman  Catho- 
lic Church,  and  is  still  unmarried.  He  possesses  a 
sound  judgment,  good  temper,  great  courtesy  of 
manner,  and  is  unsurpassed  in  his  personal  popularity 
among  his  legislative  associates,  as  well  as  among 
the  people  of  his  district.  In  person,  he  is  of  medium 
size,  with  soft  blue  eyes,  light-brown  side  whiskers 
and  imperial,  a thick  coat  of  brown  hair,  and  is 
altogether  personable,  not  to  say  prepossessing,  in 
his  general  appearance. 


EPHRAIM  GOSS. 

Senator  Goss  was  born  on  the  12th  of  June,  1806, 
in  the  then  town  of  Middleburgh,  now  the  town  of 
Fulton,  Schoharie  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  of  English  and 
Irish  descent,  and  his  parents  were  both  born  in  this 
country  before  the  Eevolution.  His  grandfather, 
Ephraim  Goss,  after  whom  he  was  named,  served 
throughout  the  War  of  Independence,  and  was  a gal- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


5t 


lant  and  successful  soldier.  His  father,  John  Goss, 
died  on  the  17th  of  June,  1847,  at  the  age  of  eighty  ; 
and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Mary  Lament, 
died  on  the  20th  of  March,  1§44,  at  the  age  of  seventy 
six. 

With  the  exception  of  some  six  months  in  an  aca- 
demical school.  Senator  Goss  received  his  education  in 
an  ordinary  district  school,  and  in  a law  office,  where 
he  was  compelled  to  go  in  consequence  of  the  district 
school-house  in  his  native  place  having  been  burned 
down.  He  then,  in  1816,  removed  with  his  parents  to 
the  section  of  the  State  in  which  he  now  resides,  and 
pursued  a classical  course,  teaching  at  intervals,  until 
he  had  attained  his  twentieth  year,  when  he  entered 
the  law  office  of  the  late  Gen.  Ira  Bellows,  of  Pitts- 
ford,  N.  Y.  After  a thorough  course  of  legal  training, 
he  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1831,  and  has  always 
since  been  a successful  lawyer,  and  an  industrious 
practical  farmer.  Besides  holding  some  minor  town 
offices,  he  was  in  1828  elected  Captain  of  a company 
of  light  infantry,  known  as  the  “Washington  Pha- 
lanx,^^  which  position  he  occupied  until  1834,  when  he 
was  chosen  Major  of  the  Fifty-second  Regiment.  One 
year  afterwards  he  was  promoted  to  the  office  of  Lieut. 
Colonel,  and  in  1843  became  Colonel,  which  he  resigned 
in  1845.  Meanwhile,  he  was  elected  a Justice  of  the 
Peace  in  1829,  and  was  re-chosen  in  1833,  M7,  ’51,  ’55^ 
and  ’59.  He  was  also  Supervisor  of  his  town  for  five 
years  from  1836,  holding  the  position  of  Chairman  of 
the  Board  in  that  year,  and  in  1848  and  in  1837  was 
chosen  County  Clerk,  which  office  he  held  three  years. 

3* 


58 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Senator  Goss  cast  his  first  vote  for  Governor  for 
De  Witt  Clinton,  and  his  first  Presidential  vote  was 
cast  for  John  Quincy  Adams,  in  1828.  He  was  always 
an  active  and  influential  Whig,  until  the  Eepublican 
movement  was  inaugurated,  when  he  became  a mem- 
ber of  that  party.  At  the  last  election,  he  was  brought 
forward  with  flattering  unanimity,  by  the  Republicans 
of  his  district,  for  the  position  he  now  occupies  in  the 
Senate,  and  was  triumphantly  elected  by  a large  ma- 
jority. He  is  a man  of  considerable  literary  talent  and 
ability,  and  is  the  author  of  a work  entitled,  ‘‘  Super- 
visors^ Book,^^  containing  an  abstract  of  all  laws  relat- 
ing to  the  powers  and  duties  of  Supervisors  in  the 
State  of  New  York,  with  suitable  forms,  notes,  and 
references,  together  with  the  parliamentary  rules  ap- 
plicable to  Boards  of  Supervisors.  The  work  has  been 
highly  recommended  by  some  of  the  best  lawyers  in 
Western  New  York,  and  has  recently  been  revised, 
and  the  second  edition  published,  containing  some 
eighty  pages  of  new  matter,  with  which  nearly  one 
half  of  the  counties  in  the  State  have  already  been  sup- 
plied. 

Senator  Goss  was  married  on  the  13th  of  November, 
1832,  to  Miss  Margaret  Porter,  and  has  been  a promi- 
nent and  influential  member  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church  since  1843.  He  is  a man  considerably  above 
the  medium  height,  being  tall  and  slender,  with  an 
active,  wiry  frame,  and  has  dark-gray  eyes,  straight 
brown  hair,  which  he  keeps  carefully  combed  forward 
over  a forehead  made  prominent  by  a partial  baldness 
in  front.  His  face  is  thin,  with  sharp,  distinct  features, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


59 


and  carries  upon  it  the  impress  of  excessive  intellectual 
labor,  and  great  mental  energy  and  activity.  During 
the  sittings  of  the  Senate,  he  is  very  close  in  his  atten- 
tion to  its  proceedings,  and  is  seldom  or  never  out 
of  his  seat.  He  possesses  considerable  ability  as  a 
speaker,  usually  participating  in  all  the  debates  of 
the  Senate,  and  shows  a more  than  ordinary  know- 
ledge of  the  affairs  of  state  and  the  necessities  of  the 
people,  and  particularly  those  of  his  own  district.  He 
is  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Internal  Affairs  of 
Towns  and  Counties — one  of  the  most  laborious  com- 
mittees in  the  Senate — besides  being  a member  of  three 
other  committees. 


ROBERT  Y.  GRANT. 

Senator  Grant  has  the  honor  to  occupy  the  seat  in 
the  Senate  which  was  filled  during  the  last  and  pre- 
ceding session  of  the  Legislature,  by  the  Hon.  Osmer 
B.  Wheeler,  of  Sullivan  county,  one  of  the  most  sub- 
stantial and  useful  members  of  that  body,  and  whose 
patriotic  and  uncompromising,  though  unsuccessful 
efforts,  as  Chairman  of  the  Standing  Committee  having 
in  charge  that  portion  of  the  Governor's  Message,  re- 
lating to  the  lobby,  to  investigate  the  supposed  corrup- 
tion in  the  passage  of  the  Albany  Bridge  Bill,  in  1856, 
deserve  the  special  and  everlasting  gratitude  of  the  tax- 
paying  people  of  the  entire  State.  It  was  indeed  quite 


60 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


evident  that  the  facts  and  circumstances  of  the  case 
fully  justified  a searching-  inquiry  into  the  means  em- 
ployed to  secure  the  passage  of  the  law  in  question, 
and  its  amendment  in  185t,  and  it  is  equally  clear  that 
while  Mr.  Wheeler,  and  those  co-operating  with  him, 
deserved  credit  for  their  efforts  in  that,  direction,  the 
means  and  appliances  by  which  the  investigation  was 
crippled  and  finally  ‘‘  crushed  out,^^  were  a shameful 
disgrace  to  the  Senate  and  the  people  of  the  whole 
State. 

Senator  Grant  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Liberty, 
Sullivan  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  of  genuine  Scotch 
descent,  and  was  born  on  the  22d  of  November,  1818. 
Both  his  parents  are  still  living,  his  father,  Joseph 
Grant,  one  of  the  pioneers  of  Sullivan  county,  and  a 
man  of  prominent  influence  and  distinction,  having 
reached  the  seventy-third  year  of  his  age,  and  his 
wife,  the  mother  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  having 
attained  her  seventy-second.  Senator  Grant  was  edu- 
cated in  the  common  district  schools  of  his  native 
place,  and  was  brought  up  a farmer  until  he  had  at- 
tained the  age  of  his  majority.  He  was  then  engaged 
in  farming  and  dealing  in  cattle,  until  about  ten  years 
ago,  since  which  time  he  has  been  successfully  en- 
gaged in  the  tanning  business.  He  sustains  the  re- 
putation of  an  honest,  correct  business  man,  of  supe- 
rior qualifications,  wherever  he  is  known,  and  is  well 
qualified  to  discharge  satisfactorily  the  duties  of  the 
position  with  which  his  constituents  have  intrusted  him 
in  the  Senate.  He  held  the  office  of  Justice  of  the 
Peace  in  the  town  of  Liberty  from  1849  until  1855, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 

and  was  Supervisor  during  the  years  1854  and  1859. 
He  has  also  held  the  office  of  postmaster  during  the 
past  six  years,  and  has  discharged  his  duties  faith- 
fully and  satisfactorily  in  every  position  to  which  the 
people  have  called  him. 

Senator  Grant  has  always  been  a consistent  and  un- 
compromising Pemocrat,  of  the  old  school.  He  is  a 
relative  of  the  Hon.  David  Wilmot,  of  Pennsylvania, 
but  has  no  sympathy  whatever  with  the  political 
principles  of  that  gentlemen.  He  has  been  somewhat 
active  in  the  local  politics  of  his  own  and  the  adjoining 
counties,  but  has  devoted  himself  more  closely  to  the 
discharge  of  his  duties  and  obligations  as  a private 
citizen,  than  to  the  observance  of  the  customary  routine 
of  latter-day  patriots  and  politicians.  He  is  a good 
speaker,  but  prefers  talking  less  and  working  more 
than  legislators  generally,  and  seldom  addresses  the 
Senate  at  any  very  great  length.  He  is  a plain,  un- 
ostentatious, common-sense  man,  with  a whole-souled, 
generous  disposition  ; and  whether  in  the  legislative 
halls  of  the  State,  or  in  the  ordinary  walks  of  private 
life,  is  still  the  same  unpretending  representative  of 
the  great  mass  of  the  industrious,  hard-working,  honest 
portion  of  the  people  of  his  district. 

Senator  Grant  was  married  on  the  4th  of  September, 
1839,  to  Miss  Sarah  Smeads,  and  confines  himself  to 
no  particular  church  in  his  attendance  upon  religious 
worship.  In  person,  he  is  a man  of  medium  height,  with 
broad  shoulders,  and  a substantiall^^-built  frame.  He 
has  a thin  coat  of  light-gray  hair,  a broad  retreating 


62 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


forehead  ; intelligent  gray  eyes,  and  a smooth,  well- 
formed  face,  which  indicates  great  firmness  and  deci- 
sion of  character.  Although  naturally  reserved,  he 
possesses,  in  a high  degree,  the  elements  of  sociabili- 
ty, and  his  warmest  and  most  devoted  friends  are  those 
w’ho  have  known  him  the  longest. 


SAMUEL  H.  HAMMOND. 

Senator  Hammond  is  one  of  the  portliest  and  most 
striking  figures  on  the  floor  of  the  Senate,  and  always 
attracts  the  attention  of  the  most  casual  observer  by 
his  singularly  imposing  personal  appearance.  He  is 
large-bodied,  with  a large,  round  head,  covered  with  a 
disordered  profusion  of  gray  hair,  a frontal  baldness, 
showing  a broad,  full  forehead,  and  a ruddy,  good- 
natured  face,  illuminated  by  large  dark  eyes  of  an  un- 
certain tinge,  deeply  set  on  either  side  of  a short 
truncated  nose,  which  stands  out  boldly  above  a 
mouth  somewhat  full  and  firm  in  its  expression.  His 
features  are  good,  of  the  mild  Eoman  sort ; his  eye- 
brows dark  and  well  arched,  and  his  complexion 
usually  florid,  as  if  he  lived  chiefly  on  buckwheat 
corn,  hominy,  mush,  milk,  small  tenderloin,  fillets  of 
beef,  nuts,  eggs,  apples,  raisins,  plums,  and  all  other 
nutriments  of  a simple  and  chiefly  farinaceous  char- 
acter. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


63 


Senator  Hammond  was  born,  in  1809,  on  the  banks 
of  the  beautiful  lake  Keuku,  in  the  State  of  New  York, 
and  is,  therefore,  in  the  fifty-first  year  of  his  age.  He 
is  descended  from  pure,  unmixed  Puritanical  stock, 
and  both  his  parents  are  now  dead.  He  was  educated 
at  the , Franklin  Academy,  at  Prattsburgh,  Steuben 
county,  and  after  devoting  some  time  to  the  study  of 
the  law,  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  entered  upon 
the  practice  of  his  profession.  About  the  year  1844, 
he  removed  from  the  interior  of  the  State,  and  took  up 
his  residence  in  the  city  of  Albany,  still  continuing  the 
practice  of  the  law.  At  the  first  election  under  the 
new  Constitution,  in  184T,  he  was  chosen  District- 
Attorney  of  Albany  county,  holding  the  office  until 
1851,  when  he  was  defeated,  as  a candidate  for  re- 
election,  by  Senator  Colvin,  the  Democratic  candidate. 
His  taste  and  disposition,  however,  had  never  been 
very  well  adapted  to  the  pursuit  of  his  profession,  he 
being  more  naturally  inclined  to  poetry  and  literature 
than  the  abstruse  questions  of  legal  jurisprudence, 
and  in  1853,  he  became  the  editor  of  the  Albany  State 
Register,  a paper  to  which  he  had  been  an  occasional 
contributor  since  its  establishment  in  1850.  This  con- 
nection continued  until  1856,  when  he  returned  to 
Steuben  county,  and  resumed  the  practice  of  the  law. 
He  had,  also,  held  the  office  of  Loan  Commissioner, 
previous  to  his  becoming  District-Attorney,  and  is 
now  a trustee  of  the  village  of  Bath,  where  he  resides. 

The  political  career  of  Senator  Hammond  is  strik- 
ingly peculiar.  He  has  completely  boxed  the  political 


64 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


compass.  He  has  been  a member  of  every  political 
party  that  has  a name — a complete  political  kaleido- 
scope, through  which  can  be  distinguished  every  shade 
and  color  of  party  change  and  individual  inconsist- 
ency. Originally  an  Abolitionist,  of  the  extremest 
sect,  he  persistently  and  resolutely  contended,  that  the 
General  government  ought  to  interfere  for  the  aboli- 
tion of  the  institution  of  slavery  in  the  States  where 
it  already  existed,  and  was  once  an  unsuccessful  can- 
didate of  that  party  for  a seat  in  the  body  of  which  he 
is  now  a member.  He  subsequently  performed  a per- 
fect political  somerset,  landing  square  in  the  Demo- 
cratic ranks,  and  was  soon  among  the  most  ardent 
and  enthusiastic  supporters  of  the  principles  and  mea- 
sures of  that  party.  He  was  next  found  doing  service 
in  the  ranks  of  the  old  Whig  party,  adhering  firmly  to 
the  Silver  Gray  wing  of  the  party,  until  its  organization 
was  abandoned,  when  he  became  an  enthusiastic  Amer- 
ican. It  was  during  his  connection  with  this  party, 
that  he  had  the  control  of  the  Albany  State  Register. 
In  the  winter  of  1856,  he  was  a member  of  the  Ame- 
rican National  Council,  held  at  Philadelphia,  and  was 
the  only  supporter  in  that  body  from  New  York  of  the 
well-known  Twelfth  Section,^^  which  denied  the  as- 
sumed right  of  Congress  to  interfere  with  the  subject 
of  slavery  in  the  territories  of  the  United  States.  He 
was  an  ardent  outside  friend  of  George  Law,  as  a 
candidate  for  the  Presidency,  at  the  American  National 
Convention,  held  in  that  city,  about  the  same  time  ; and 
flew  the  track  after  Mr.  Fillmore^s  nomination,  by 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


65 


earnestly  supporting  Col.  Fremont.  Since  then  he  has 
kept  steady  march  beneath  the  colors  of  modern  Repub- 
licanism, and  judging  from  his  recent  speech,  in  the 
Senate,  on  the  subject  of  Mr.  Seward^s  “ Irrepressible 
Conflict,^  will  soon  be  admitted  to  his  original  good 
standing  among  his  old  friends  of  the  rabid  abolition 
or  John  Brown  school. 

Senator  Hammond  is  a good  speaker — perfectly 
self-possessed,  and  has  a habit  of  thinking  on  his  legs, 
which  furnishes  a fine  contrast  to  the  studied  efforts 
of  some  of  his  legislative  associates.  His  gestures 
and  manner  are  rarely  inappropriate,  and  he  is  ^always 
perfectly  easy — now  turning  to  the  Republican  side  of 
the  Senate,  then  towards  the  Democrats,  and  always 
preserving  an  easy  tone  of  half-badinage,  half-earnest- 
ness, which  keeps  friends  and  foes  in  good  humor, 
while  at  the  same  time  stating  his  positions  with 
great  force,  point,  and  perspicuity.  He  is  equally 
accomplished  as  a writer.  His  style  is  easy,  fluent,  clear, 
and  expressive,  and  adapts  itself,  like  a silken  shawl, 
to  every  swell  and  motion  and  curve  of  a subject ; it 
has  the  soft  flow  and  easy  cadence,  which  marked  the 
best  distinctive  styles  of  the  eighteenth  century,  and 
is  stubborned  with  something  of  the  sterner  music  of 
the  nineteenth. 

Senator  Hammond  married  a Miss  Humphrey,  about 
the  year  1830,  and  attends  the  Catholic  Episcopal 
Church. 


66 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


THOMAS  HILLHOUSE. 

Senator  Hillhouse  was  born  on  the  10th  of  March, 
1817,  in  the  town  of  Watervliet,  Albany  coun<ty,  N.  Y. 
Ills  great-grandfather  came  to  America  in  1733,  from 
Belfast,  Ireland,  and  settled  in  Montville,  New  London 
county,  Connecticut,  where  he  established  a Protestant 
church,  and  preached  the  Gospel  during  the  remainder 
of  his  life.  He  had  two  sons,  William  and  James 
Abram,  the  former  of  whom  fell  heir  to  his  fathers 
estate  at  Montville,  and  the  latter  of  whom  removed 
to  New  Haven,  where  he  became  a distinguished 
lawyer.  William  Hillhouse  was  for  forty  consecutive 
years  a member  of  the  Governors  Council,  and  never 
lost  a single  year  in  his  attendance  upon  the  meetings 
of  that  body.  His  oldest  son  was  James  Hillhouse, 
of  New  Haven,  for  many  years  a Eepresentative  in 
Congress,  and  afterwards  United  States  Senator  from 
Connecticut.  His  youngest  son  was  Thomas  Hillhouse, 
the  father  of  the  father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
who,  in  1801,  removed  to  the  city  of  Troy,  where  he 
remained  until  1810,  when  he  purchased  and  removed 
upon  a farm  on  the  west  side  of  the  Hudson  river, 
in  the  county  of  Albany.  He  died  in  1834,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-eight ; and  his  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Anna  Ten  Broeck,  is  still  living,  at  an  advanced  age. 
Her  father  was  a major  in  the  Ke volution,  and  actively 
participated  in  the  battles  of  Monmouth,  Yorktown, 
and  Fort  Stanwix. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


67 


Senator  Hillhouse  was  educated  in  Columbia  county, 
N.  Y.,  pursuing  an  academical  course  with  a view  of 
entering  college,  but  abandoned  his  studies  at  his 
father^s  death,  'to  take  charge  of  the  latter’s  unsettled 
estate.  He  was  then  so  engaged,  in  connection  with 
farming,  until  1851,  when  he  removed  to  the  village 
of  Geneva,  Ontario  county,  where  he  has  always  since 
lived  a retired  life.  He  held  the  position  of  Treasurer 
of  the  New  York  State  Agricultural  Society  during 
the  administration  of  Judge  Beekman,  of  Columbia 
county,  as  its  President.  Aside  from  this,  he  never 
occupied  any  very  prominent  position  in  public,  until 
the  fall  of  1859,  when  he  was  brought  forward  by  the 
Republicans  of  the  twenty-sixth  district,  with  great 
unanimity,  as  a candidate  for  the  distinguished  position 
he  now  holds.  The  nomination  was  conferred  upon 
him  without  his  solicitation,  he  being  absent  in  the 
territory  of  Kansas  at  the  time  ; but  although  not 
ambitious  of  political  preferment,  he  entered  upon  the 
contest,  on  his  return  home,  with  great  determin- 
ation and  enthusiasm,  and  was  victoriously  elected  by 
nearly  one  thousand  majority.  He  was  originally  a 
Democrat,  adhering  closely  and  unyieldingly  to  the 
regular  organization  of  that  party  until  1854,  when 
the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise  induced  him  to 
enlist,  among  the  very  first,  in  the  establishment  of 
the  Republican  movement.  Since  then  he  has  been 
active  and  industrious  in  the  promotion  of  the  interests 
of  that  party,  and  its  organization  in  the  county  of 
Ontario. 


68 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


There  is  nothing  brilliant  or  meteoric  about  Sena- 
tor Hillhouse.  He  is  simply  a plain,  unpretending, 
and  successful  practical  man.  He  makes  no  pre- 
tensions as  a speaker,  and  contents  himself  with 
discharging  his  legislative  duties  quietly  and  indus- 
triously. In  his  private,  as  in  his  public  character,  he 
is  perfectly  irreproachable,  being  distinguished  for  his 
integrity,  uprightness,  and  honesty  of  purpose.  Al- 
though somewhat  reserved  in  his  general  habits, 
his  social  qualities  are  of  a superior  order.  He  has 
the  happy  faculty  of  making  himself  agreeable  to  all 
with  whom  he  comes  in  contact,  and  the  longer  his 
friends  know  him,  the  stronger  becomes  their  attach-* 
ment  for  him.  In  person,  he  is  somewhat  above  the 
medium  height  ; is  slender  and  well  formed  ; has 
brown-hazel  eyes ; dark-brown  hair  and  whiskers, 
and  a thoughtful,  intelligent  countenance,  which  indi- 
cates the  powers  of  close  application  and  superior 
mental  force. 

Senator  Hillhouse  was  married  in  December,  1844, 
to  Miss  Harriet  Pronty,  of  the  village  of  Geneva,  and 
attends  the  Dutch  Eeformed  Church,  of  which  his  aged 
mother  is  an  exemplary  member. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


69 


BEENAKD  KELLY. 

Senator  Kelly  is  a practical  mechanic  and  eminent- 
ly a self-made  man.  All  men  now  stand  more  solely 
and  independently  on  the  pedestal  of  their  own  indi- 
viduality than  was  ever  the  case  before,  and  no  man 
is  in  this  more  strikingly  representative  of  the  age  in 
which  we  live,  than  he  of  whom  we  here  speak.  What- 
ever he  is,  and  has,  he  owes  entirely  to  himself.  In 
the  firm,  deliberate  planting  of  his  heavy  step  ; in 
the  quiet,  wide-open,  though  unassuming  determina- 
tion of  his  eye  ; in  the  unagitated,  unaffected,  self- 
relying  dignity  of  his  whole  gait  and  deportment,  you 
behold  the  man  who  ought  to  feel  that,  whatever  his 
origin  may  have  been,  he  may,  without  pride  or  pre- 
sumption, measure  himself  hf  the  standard  of  his  man- 
hood, and  so  look  every  man,  of  whatsoever  station, 
calmly  in  the  face. 

Senator  Kelly  is  a native  of  the  Seventh  AVard,  in 
the  city  of  New  York,  and  is  thirty-seven  years  of  age. 
He  is  of  Irish  descent,  and  the  son  of  respectable  and 
intelligent  parents.  His  education  may  also  be  pro- 
nounced, if  not  distinctive  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
yet  highly  characteristic  of  it.  Theoretic  education, 
the  education  of  letters,  is  in  his  case  rather  peculiarly 
blended  with  the  education  of  practice.  He  is  one  of 
the  strong  men,  who,  amid  the  sternest  toil  of  mechan- 
ical employment,  have  become  acquainted,  and  that 
not  cursorily  and  superficially,  but  systematically  and 


70 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


profoundly,  with  that  knowledge  of  books,  which  ap- 
pears almost  indispensable,  in  this  age  of  progress  and 
intelligence,  to  the  man  of  successful  distinction.  His 
business  qualifications  are  of  a high  order,  to  which 
the  success  he  has  always  met  with  in  his  business 
career  bears  ample  testimony,  and  his  honesty  and 
strict  integrity  of  purpose,  have  always  remained  un- 
questioned in  the  city  of  his  residence. 

Politically,  he  has  never  wavered  in  his  stern  and 
unyielding  devotion  to  the  cause  of  the  Democratic 
party,  having  been  for  many  years  a representative  of 
his  ward  in  the  various  prominent  Democratic  com- 
mittees in  the  city  of  New  York,  and  ranks  high 
among  the  most  distinguished  and  influential  politi- 
cians in  that  section  of  the  State.  Notwithstanding 
his  unceasing  activity  in  behalf  of  the  best  interests  of 
his  party,  however,  he  'has  always  had  a strong 
aversion  to  holding  public  ofiice,  and  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  position  of  Superintendent  of  Wharves, 
Piers,  and  Slips,  which  he  held  two  different  terms,  he 
never  occupied  any  prominent  public  place,  until  his 
promotion  to  the  seat  he  now  fills  in  the  Senate. 
He  was  brought  forward  for  this  position,  entirely 
without  his  solicitation,  and  against  his  expressed 
wishes,  at  the  last  election,  with  entire  unanimity, 
by  the  united  Democratic  forces  of  his  district, 
and  was  triumphantly  elected.  Thus  far,  he  has 
proven  himself  a safe  counselor  and  a good  represen- 
tative, and,  although  perfectly  quiet  and  unostenta- 
tious, has  pursued  a straight-forward,  consistent,  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


n 


industrious  course  in  the  Senate,  which  has  doubtless 
not  failed  to  have  a proper  influence  upon  the  delibera- 
tions of  that  body.  He  is  a man  of  strong  common- 
sense,  and  sound  practical  judgment,  and  entitles  him- 
self as  much  by  his  ability,  as  by  his  diligence  and  in- 
dustry, to  the  confidence  of  the  important  constituency 
he  represents.  His  greatest  fault  is  a natural  diffi- 
dence, which  causes  him  to  distrust  his  own  ability, 
and  a degree  of  modesty  that  often  shuns  responsibility. 
To  be  fully  appreciated,  he  must  be  well  known,  and 
the  more  thoroughly  he  is  known,  the  more  will  he  be 
esteemed  and  confided  in. 

Senator  Kelly  was  married  some  years  ago,  to  Miss 
Hannah  A.  Doxey,  and  is  of  the  Roman  Catholic  per- 
suasion, while  his  wife  is  a member  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church.  He  is  very  agreeable  and  sociable, 
when  once  acquainted,  and  is  well  constituted  to  win 
friends,  and  keep  them,  wherever  he  goes.  He  is  with- 
out doubt  the  most  popular  man  in  the  Eleventh  Ward 
in  New  York,  where  he  has  resided  about  twenty-five 
years,  and  the  same  may  perhaps  be  safely  said  of  his 
standing  wherever  he  is  known,  throughout  the  entire 
city. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


12 


JOHN  H.  KETCHAM. 

Senator  Ketcham  was  born  on  the  21st  of  December, 
1832,  at  Dover  Plains,  Dutchess  county,  New  York, 
where  he  has  always  resided.  He  is  of  English  des- 
cent. His  paternal  grandfather,  James  Ketcham, 
was  a captain  in  the  war  of  1812,  and  in  1819  was  a 
member  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  New  York., 
His  father,  John  M.  Ketcham,  who  was  a member  of 
the  Assembly  in  1842  and  ^43,  died  on  the  11th  of 
June,  1853,  at  the  age  of  forty-seven,  and  his  mother, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Eliza  A.  Stevens,  is  still 
living. 

Senator  Ketcham  was  educated  at  the  Worcester 
Academy,  in  Massachusetts,  and  at  the  Connecticut 
Literary  Institute,  at  Suffield,  Connecticut.  After 
leaving  school,  he  engaged  yi  agricultural  pursuits, 
in  which  he  has  always  since  been  successfully  em- 
ployed, besides  working  one  of  the  most  extensive 
and  profitable  marble  quarries  in  ithe  State.  He  has 
also  had  the  charge  of  the  estate  of  his  father  since 
the  lattePs  death,  in  1853,  and  has  acquired  the  repu- 
tation of  an  industrious,  skillful,  and  correct  business 
man.  He  was  Supervisor  of  the  town  in  which  he 
lives  in  1854,  discharging  his  duties  intelligently  and 
efficiently,  and  again  held  the  position  during  the  year 
1855.  In  the  fall  of  the  same  year  he  was  elected  to 
the  Assembly,  and  during  the  session  which  followed, 
gave  considerable  evidence  of  his  legislative  ability. 


Kanesvil 
1852  Establis 

was  dest 


1817  Born  wes 

1832  Moved  to 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


73 


both  on  the  floor  of  the  House  and  as  a member  of  the 
Standing  Committee  on  Agriculture.  He  was  again 
a member  of  that  body  in  1857,  and  during  the  session 
of  that  year  was  chairman  of  the  Standing  Committee 
on  Koads  and  Bridges,  and  a member  of  the  Sub- 
committee of  the  Whole — one  of  the  most  important 
committees  in  either  branch  of  the  Legislature. 

In  politics.  Senator  Ketcham  was  formerly  an 
active  Whig,  but  he  was  among  the  very  first  to  em- 
bark in  the  Republican  movement  at  the  organization 
of  that  party.  Since  then,  he  has  been  unsurpassed 
by  any  other  member  of  the  party,  in  Dutchess  county, 
in  his  ceaseless  and  untiring  efforts  to  promote  its 
interest,  and  secure  its  permanent  success.  He  has 
always  been  a shrewd,  active,  and  intelligent  poli- 
tician, wielding  a strong  influence  in  his  own  and 
many  of  the  adjoining  counties,  and  succeeded  at  the 
last  election,  as  a candidate  for  the  seat  he  now  holds 
in  the  Senate,  by  a majority  of  over  fifteen  hundred. 
As  a legislator,  he  is  cautious,  industrious,  and  effi- 
cient, and  as  a man  occupies  a high  position  among 
all  his  legislative  associates,  as  well  as  among  the 
people  of  the  community  in  which  he  resides.  He  is 
naturally  a pretty  good  talker,  but  is  constitutionally 
quiet,  and  never  makes  any  efforts  at  oratorical  dis- 
play in  the  Senate.  He  is  utilitarian  rather  than  the- 
oretical in  his  views  on  all  subjects,  and  contents  him- 
self with  pursuing  a quiet  though  eminently  practical 
and  efficient  legislative  course.  His  greatest  worth 
consists  in  his  superior  business  qualifications,  and  to 
4 


74 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


these  same  qualities  is  owing,  perhaps,  more  than  to 
any  thing  else,  his  signal  success  as  a politician  and 
legislator. 

Senator  Ketcham  was  married  on  the  4th  of  Febru- 
ary, 1858,  to  Miss  Augusta  A.  Belden,  a lady  of  superior 
female  qualities,  and  belongs  to  the  Baptist  Church,  as 
does,  also,  his  wife.  He  is  a man  of  medium  height, 
and  is  somewhat  slender,  though  well  formed.  He  has 
light-brown  hair  and  beard  ; blue  eyes  ; light  com- 
plexion ; and  a good-natured,  clever  countenance,  which 
is  calculated  to  make  the  most  favorable  impression 
on  all  with  whom  he  comes  in  contact. 


NATHAN  LAPHAM. 

, Senator  Lapham  was  born  on  the  22d  of  October, 
1820,  in  the  town  of  Collins,  Erie  county,  N.  Y.  He 
is  descended  from  good  old  Quaker  stock,  and  traces 
his  ancestry  as  far  back  as  the  third  generation.  His 
paternal  ancestors  were  residents  of  North  Adams, 
Massachusetts,  where  they  settled  about  the  middle  of 
the  last  century,  and  where  his  paternal  grand-father, 
Nathan  Lapham,  was  subsequently  born.  His  father, 
Joseph  Lapham,  who  was  a native  of  Danby,  Vermont, 
died  in  1851,  at  the  age  of  sixty-five,  and  his  mother, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Anna  Keese,  died  at  a compar- 
atively early  age,  in  1833. 

Senator  Lapham  removed,  with  his  parents,  when 
only  two  years  of  age,  to  Peru,  Clinton  county,  N.  Y., 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


75 


where  he  has  always  since  been  a permanent  resident. 
He  was  reared  on  a farm,  and  received  a common- 
school  and  academical  education.  He  was  for  many  years 
successfully  engaged  in  farming,  and  in  the  mercantile, 
lumber,  andiron  business,  and  is  now  pretty  extensively 
employed  in  farming  and  milling.  He  is  a thorough- 
going, straight-forward,  industrious,  and  energetic 
business  man,  and  has  met  with  much  more  than  ordi- 
nary success  in  all  the  business  enterprises  in  which 
he  has  taken  part.  The  first  public  position  he  ever 
held,  was  that  of  Loan  Commissioner,  which  he  oc- 
cupied for  four  years,  under  the  successive  administra- 
tions of  Governor  Clark  and  Governor  King,  and  ac- 
quitted himself  with  considerable  success  in  the  dis- 
charge of  all  his  duties  in  that  capacity.  He  then  per- 
sistently refused  to  accept  any  further  public  position 
until  the  fall  of  1859,  when,  at  the  earnest  solicitation 
of  many  friends,  he  consented  to  become  a candidate 
for  the  seat  he  now  fills  in  the  Senate,  and  was  tri- 
umphantly elected  by  a large  majority.  Politically,  he 
was  formerly  a Free-soil  Whig,  of  the  Seward  school, 
and  was  one  among  the  very  first  to  take  an  active 
part  in  the  organization  of  the  Republican  party. 
He  was  a delegate  to  the  first  Republican  State 
Convention  ever  held  in  New  York,  and  was 
also  a representative  in  the  convention  by  which 
Governor  Morgan  was  nominated  for  the  distin- 
guished position  he  now  occupies.  As  a politician, 
he  is  unyielding  and  uncompromising  in  his  attach- 
ment to  principle  ; indefatigable  and  very  success- 


1 6 BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 

ful  in  all  his  efforts  ; and  since  the  age  of  twenty,  has 
been  working  steadily  and  perseveringly  in  the  har- 
ness of  Freedom,  without  ever  exhibiting  the  slightest 
disposition  to-  kick  over  the  traces.^’  He  maintains 
a high  reputation  in  the  community  in  which  he 
resides,  as  a man  of  capacity  and  integrity,  and  is  per- 
sonally, as  well  as  politically,  one  of  the  most  pop- 
ular men  in  Clinton  county. 

Senator  Lapham  was  chosen  President  pro  tern,  of 
the  Senate^  shortly  after  the  opening  of  the  present 
session  of  the  Legislature,  and  has  shown  himself  a 
dignified  and  impartial  presiding  officer  of  that  body. 
He  possesses  strong  common-sense,  a sound  practical 
judgment,  a good  stock  of  general  knowledge,  but  sel- 
dom enters  the  arena  of  debate,  and  contents  himself 
with  being  simply  a quiet,  industrious,  and  successful 
representative.  He  is  a gentleman  of  noble  presence, 
being  tall,  erect,  dignified,  and  somewhat  inclined  to 
corpulency,  with  dark  hair,  slightly  mixed  with  gray, 
expressive  dark  eyes,  and  a merry,  good-natured  face, 
fringed  with  heavy  whiskers.  He  is  seldom  absent 
from  his  post,  and  votes  and  acts  on  all  questions 
coming  before  the  Senate,  as  best  becomes,  in  his 
judgment,  not  only  the  interests  of  his  own  constitu- 
ency, but  of  the  people  of  the  entire  State. 

Senator  Lapham  was  married  on  the  22d  of  Febru- 
ary, 1842,  to  Miss  Jane  R.  Barker,  and  belongs  to  the 
Society  of  Friends,  as  does  also  his  estimable  lady. 
His  social  qualities  are  of  a superior  order,  and  he 
sustains  a high  reputation  in  all  the  private  and 
domestic  relations  of  life. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


n 


EDWAKD  ARTHUR  LAWRENCE. 

Senator  Lawrence,  the  seventh  son  and  twelfth  child 
of  Judge  Effingham  Lawrence,  of  Flushing,  Long 
Island,  by  his  wife,  Anne,  daughter  of  Solomon  Town- 
send, of  New  York,  was  born  at  Bay  Side,  on  the 
estate  of  his  ancestors,  on  the  3d  of  November,  1832. 
He  is  of  unmixed  English  descent,  and  his  progenitors 
were,  on  both  sides,  among  the  earliest  English  set- 
tlers of  the  State  of  New  York.  The  names  of  his 
paternal  and  maternal  ancestors — ^AYilliam  Lawrence 
and  John  Townsend — are  both  to  be  found  upon  the 
original  patent  of  Flushing,  granted  by  the  Dutch 
Governor,  Kieft,  in  1645. 

Senator  Lawrence^s  father  was  first  Judge  of 
Queens  county  for  many  years.  He  was  one  of  the 
earliest  importers  of  merino  sheep,  and  the  first  Presi- 
dent of  the  Queens  County  Agricultural  Society.  His 
acute  perception,  solid  judgment,  and  well-balanced 
intellect,  rendered  him  one  of  the  first  to  seize,  and 
one  of  the  most  earnest  to  develop,  every  improve- 
ment in  both  the  science  and  the  practice  of  agri- 
culture. A frank,  liberal,  and  hospitable  country 
gentleman,  he  was,  at  the  same  time,  eminently 
a practical  farmer,  and  among  the  best  and  most 
prominent  agriculturists  of  the  State  of  New 
York.  It  is  generally  conceded  that  the  mantle 
of  the  father  has  worthily  descended  upon  the 
shoulders  of  the  Senator  from  the  First ; for  the  lat- 
ter is  now  President  of  the  Queens  County  Agricultu- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


IS 

ral  Society,  having*  been  elected  to  that  position,  at  the 
last  annual  meeting  of  the  Society,  as  the  successor  of 
ex-Gov,  King,  and  he  has  pursued  his  profession  with 
such  eminent  success,  that  more  premiums  have  been 
awarded  him,  particularly  for  stock,  than  any  other 
man  in  the  county  of  Queens. 

If  legislative  position  could  be  inherited.  Senator 
Lawrence  might  naturally  claim  his  present  seat.  His 
maternal  grandfather,  Solomon  Townsend,  after  serv- 
ing as  a member  of  the  Assembly,  from  the  city  of  New 
York,  for  six  years,  died  in  the  harness,  during  the 
session  of  1 8 1 1 . His  great-grand-father,  Samuel  Towns- 
end, of  Oyster  Bay,  was  a member  of  the  New  York 
Provincial  Congress,  during  the  Revolution,  and  of  the 
Convention  that  established  the  first  Constitution  of 
the  State  of  New  York,  in  1711.  Under  this  Constitu- 
tion, he  was  a member  of  the  State  Senate,  from  1784 
till  1790,  and  one  of  the  Council  of  Appointment  in 
1789.  He  died,  in  office,  in  1790. 

Senator  Lawrence  has  been  three  years  Supervisor, 
his  ability,  fidelity,  and  integrity  having,  during  that 
period,  uninterruptedly  continued  to  him  the  suffrages 
of  the  people  of  Flushing.  In  the  fall  of  1857,  he  was 
elected  a member  of  the  Assembly,  on  the  same  day  on 
which  he  became  twenty-five  years  of  age,  from  the 
First  District  of  Queens  county,  by  over  five  hundred 
majority,  and  during  the  session  of  the  Legislature 
which  followed,  gained  universal  confidence  and  estepm 
by  his  strict  attention  to  business,  and  straight-for- 
ward honesty  of  purpose,  both  on  the  floor  of  the  House, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


79 


and  as  Chairman  of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Inter- 
nal affairs  of  Towns  and  Counties,  and  a member  of  that 
on  Militia  and  Public  Defense,  and  other  committees,  and 
now  these  sentiments  have  been  expanded  into  an 
affectionate  regard,  in  all  cases,  where  personal  inter- 
course has  made  apparent  his  warm  heart,  cheerful 
temper,  and  frank,  fearless,  and  unaffected  good-na- 
ture. He  was  re-elected,  by  over  six  hundred  majority, 
to  the  Assembly  of  1859,  where  he  was  again  promi- 
nent as  an  industrious  and  useful  member  of  the  Stand- 
ing Committees  on  Ways  and  Means,  and  Militia,  and 
Public  Defense,  and  where  he  distinguished  himself, 
not  only  as  a first-class  parliamentarian,  but  as  a clear 
and  comprehensive  speaker.  His  speeches  against  the 
bill,  providing  for  the  construction  of  certain  railroads 
in  the  city  of  New  York,  and  the  celebrated  Personal 
Liberty  bill,  were  at  once  clear,  concise,  and  eloquent, 
and  especially  was  the  latter  so,  as  will  be  seen  from 
the  following  extract,  in  which  he  applauds  the  spirit 
of  nationality  that  existed  in  the  early  days  of  the 
Kepublic,  and  declares  himself  a supporter  of  the  Con- 
stitution and  the  Union  : 

But  this,  Mr.  Chairman,  is  fortunately  not  the  case. 
Thanks  be  to  the  God  of  battles,  the  sanguinary 
struggles  in  behalf  of  American  freedom,  resulted  in 
something  more  noble  and  patriotic  than  all  this.  The 
sterling  patriots  of  the  Revolution,  whose  blood  was 
freely  shed  upon  the  heights  of  Bunker  Hill  and  the 
plains  of  Yorktown  and  Saratoga,  had  a higher  and 
nobler  object  in  view  than  all  this,  during  the  enact- 


80 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Hient  of  the  dark  and  bloody  scenes  of  that  glorious 
chapter  in  the  history  of  our  country.  No  sectional 
confines,  sir,  controlled  their  vision,  or  bound  them  to 
the  interests  or  prejudices  of  this  or  that  locality,  but 
they  fought,  and  fought  gallantly,  for  the  civil  and 
religious  rights  and  privileges  of  a common  country, 
embracing  each  and  every  State  of  the  Confederacy  in 
one  common  brotherhood,  instituted  for  the  common 
welfare  of  a rapidly  increasing  and  independent 
people. 

Sir,  I thank  God  that  I am  a citizen  of  the  great 
State  of  New  York.  I love  her  independence  and 
mighty  commercial  position  and  influence  among  her 
sister  States  of  this  Union.  I love  her  institutions, 
and  the  industry,  intelligence,  and  enterprise  of  her 
extensive  population,  and  all  the  other  great  elements 
of  a nation^s  prosperity  and  strength  which  she  pos- 
sesses within  herself.  But,  Mr.  Chairman,  while  I 
rejoice  that  I am  a citizen  of  a State  of  this  character 
and  importance  among  the  other  members  of  the  Con- 
federacy, I cannot  but  rejoice  still  more,  sir,  that  I 
am  a citizen  of  the  United  States. 

Sir,  I am  not  here  alone  to  legislate  for  the  State  of 
New  York.  My  oath  of  office  compels  me  to  support 
the  Federal  Constitution,  and  so  long,  sir,  as  I have 
a seat  in  this  or  any  other  body  which  requires  of  me 
the  obligations  of  a solemn  oath  to  support  that  Con- 
stitution, I will  do  so  to  the  best  of  my  humble 
ability,  regardless,  sir,  of  sectional  interests,  and  all 
other  subordinate  or  local  considerations.” 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


81 


Senator  Lawrence  has  always  been  a consistent 
and  straight-forward  Democrat  of  the  national  conser- 
vative or  Hardshell  school,  and  was  the  successful 
candidate  for  the  seat  he  now  occupies  in  the  Senate, 
by  a majority  of  upwards  of  sixteejx  hundred  over  the 
combined  forces  of  the  Opposition.  He  is  prompt,  de- 
cided, and  industrious  in  the  discharge  of  the  duties 
of  his  new  position,  both  on  the  floor  of  the  Senate, 
and  as  a member  of  the  various  committees  to  which 
he  belongs.  He  seldom  addresses  the  Senate,  at  any 
considerable  length,  save  on  important  occasions,  and 
even  then  it  is  only  after  the  most  careful  and  delib- 
erate consideration  of  the  subject-matter  in  hand. 

Senator  Lawrence  married  Miss  Hannah,  daughter 
of  the  Hon.  A.  H.  Mickler,  of  New  York,  formerly  Mayor 
of  that  city,  and  in  all  the  social  relations  of  life,  stands 
deservedly  high  in  the  community  where  he  resides. 
In  person,  he  is  a large,  substantially-built,  companion- 
able-looking man,  of  about  medium  height,  and  inclined 
to  corpulency,  with  a profusion  of  dark-brown  hair, 
blue  eyes,  and  a fresh,  smooth,  good-natured  face,  that 
seldom  fails  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  most  casual 
observer  on  flrst  entering  the  Senate-chamber. 


82 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


PERRIN  H.  McGRAW. 

Senator  McGraw  was  born  on  the  28th  of  December, 
1822,  in  McGrawville,  Cortland  county,  N.  Y.  He  is 
the  son  of  the  late  Hon.  Henry  McGraw,  who  emigrated, 
with  his  parents,  from  New  Haven,  Connecticut,  in 
1803,  at  which  time  there  were  only  three  families  in 
that  then  wilderness.  He  embarked  in  the  mercantile 
business  in  1818,  and  was  so  engaged  until  the  time 
of  his  death,  in  1849.  He  died  at  the  age  of  fifty-two, 
and  was  one  of  the  most  prominent  and  influential  mer- 
chants in  the  county,  having  been  a man  of  strict  integ- 
rity, and  upright  and  honorable  in  all  his  transactions 
through  life.  He  was  appointed  post-master  in  1821, 
holding  the  position  up  to  the  time  of  his  death,  and 
represented  Cortland  county  in  the  Legislature  in  1843. 
He  was  always  an  active  Whig,  and  one  of  the  strong- 
est political  desires  of  his  life  was  to  live  long  enough 
to  see  Henry  Clay  chosen  President  of  the  United 
States.  He  was  married,  in  1820,  to  Miss  Sally  Smith, 
of  Barre,  Worcester  county,  Massachusetts,  who  is  still 
living,  and  who  is  of  English  descent.  Her  father  was 
an  officer  in  the  Revolutionary  war. 

Senator  McGraw  received  an  academical  education. 
After  leaving  school,  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  he  engaged 
as  a clerk  in  the  mercantile  and  general  produce  busi- 
ness, and  at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  became  interested 
in  business  with  his  father,  who  was  extensively 
engaged  in  the  mercantile  and  produce  trade.  He  was 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


83 


then  so  employed  until  his  father’s  death  in  1849,  when 
he  became  the  leading  partner  of  a firm,  which  existed 
until  185t,  when  the  mercantile  trade  was  relinquished; 
the  same  firm,  however,  continuing  an  extensive  pro- 
duce and  real  estate  business.  In  1849,  he  was  ap- 
pointed post-master,  having  been  an  assistant,  under 
his  father,  for  several  years  ; but  his  Whig  principles 
were  too  strong  for  the  administration  of  President 
Pierce,  and  in  1853  he  was  removed.  In  the  fall  of 
the  same  year  he  received  an  unsolicited  nomination 
for  Member  of  the  Assembly,  and  was  elected  by  the 
largest  majority  ever  given  to  a Whig  candidate  in 
that  county. 

In  the  fall  of  1859,  he  was  brought  forward  as  a 
candidate  for  the  seat  he  now  occupies  in  the  Senate, 
by  the  people  of  his  county,  with  a unanimity  rarely, 
if  ever,  equalled,  and  received  upwards  of  twelve 
thousand  votes,  running  far  in  advance  of  his  ticket, 
while  his  opponent,  who  was  supported  by  the  com- 
bined Democratic  and  American  vote,  received  only 
about  eight  thousand.  The  number  of  votes  received  by 
him  was  the  largest  given  for  any  Senatorial  candidate 
in  the  State.  In  politics,  he  was  formerly  a Whig, 
actively  and  unyieldingly  devoted  to  the  principles 
and  policy  of  that  gallant  old  party  from  1840,  until  it 
ceased  to  exist,  and  was  a delegate  to  the  last  Whig 
State  Convention  held  in  the  State,  in  1854.  Since 
then  he  has  been  identified  with  the  Republican  party, 
although  still  entertaining  sound,  conservative  views 
on  all  the  great  questions  of  State  or  National  charac- 


84 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ter.  He  is  a gentleman  of  superior  business  qualifi- 
cations ; and  although  one  of  the  most  quiet,  unpre- 
tending, and  unassuming  men  in  the  Senate,  is  emi- 
nently well  qualified,  by  his  intellectual,  social,  and 
moral  character,  to  discharge  properly  the  duties  of 
his  official  position.  He  possesses  great  amiability  of 
temper,  being  of  a conciliatory  turn,  and  is  very 
agreeable  in  his  unreserved  intercourse  with  his  per- 
sonal and  political  friends.  His  habits  are  singularly 
unostentatious,  and  he  is  distinguished  for  his  simple 
and  abstemious  manner  of  life.  In  person,  he  is  a tall, 
handsomely-formed  man,  with  a broad,  retreating  fore- 
head, rendered  prominent  by  partial  baldness  ; bril- 
liant, expressive  dark  eyes,  and  black  hair  ; features 
purely  and  regularly  classic  in  their  mould,  and  a 
countenance  suggesting  superior  mental  and  moral 
worth  ; while  his  deportment  is  at  once  easy,  high- 
bred, and  dignified,  without  a trace  of  afi'ectation. 

Senator  McGraw  was  married  in  1848  to  Miss 
Louisa,  only  daughter  of  Garret  Pritchard,  an  exten- 
sive farmer  in  Cortland  county,  and  is  a member  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church. 


BENJAMIN  F.  MANIERRE. 

Senator  Manierre  is  a native  of  the  county  of 
New  London,  Connecticut.  His  father’s  great-grand- 
father was  a French  officer,  and  his  mother’s  family 
originally  came  from  Scotland.  They  were  of  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


85 


somewhat  celebrated  family  of  Lees,  of  Revolu- 
tionary memory,  and  locating  in  New  London  in  the 
early  days  of  the  Colony,  took  an  active  and  pro- 
minent part  in  all  the  affairs  of  that  province.  His 
father,  who  was  a gentleman  of  high  character  and 
superior  ability,  died  at  the  age  of  forty-five,  and  his 
mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Lee,  died  at  the  age 
of  fifty-five,  in  the  city  of  Chicago,  surrounded  by 
her  children,  for  whom  she  had  toiled  and  suffered, 
and  whom  she  had  the  happiness  to  live  long  enough 
to  sea  well  settled  and  respected  in  life. 

All  the  members  of  the  family  to  which  Senator 
Manierre  belongs,  have  become  more  or  less  distin- 
guished. His  oldest  brother,  John  Manierre,  was  a 
Commodore  in  the  Buenos  Ayres  navy,  and  was  lost 
at  sea.  Another  brother,  George,  is  circuit  judge  of 
Cook  county,  Illinois,  and  his  brother  Edward  was 
for  a number  of  years  Treasurer  of  the  city  of  Chicago. 
Shortly  after  his  father^s  death,  his  mother,  deeming  it 
best,  with  her  limited  means,  to  remove  to  the  city  of 
New  York,  with  her  children,  did  so  in  the  spring  of 
1829.  The  subject  of  this  sketch  then  received  the 
ruiiments  of  a common  English  education,  in  the  pri- 
vate and  public  schools  of  that  city,  and  at  the  early 
age  of  twelve,  was  placed  in  a banking  and  exchange 
office,  commencing  with  a salary  of  one  dollar  and  a 
half  per  week.  Here  he  remained  during  an 
uninterrupted  period  of  twenty-five  years,  at  the 
end  of  which  time  he  was  chosen  President 
of  the  Importers^  and  Traders^  Insurance  Com- 


86 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


pany.  He  has  also  held  the  position  some  time,  of 
President  of  the  New  York  Young  Men’s  Christian 
Association,  and  is  well  known  for  his  active  partici- 
pation in  all  religious  and  benevolent  enterprises  in 
the  city  of  New  York.  He  never  held  any  prominent 
official  position  at  the  hands  of  the  people,  until  the 
fall  of  1859,  when  he  was  brought  forward  by  the  Ke- 
publicans  of  the  Sixth  District  for  the  seat  he  now  fills 
in  the  Senate,  and  was  triumphantly  elected.  He  was 
originally  a Democrat  of  the  Tammany  Hall  school, 
and  remained  closely  attached  to  that  party  until  1848, 
when  his  Freesoil  proclivities  led  him  into  the  ranks 
of  the  supporters  of  Mr.  Yan  Buren  for  the  Presidency. 
Since  then  he  has  been  a firm  and  consistent  support- 
er of  the  principle  of  Congressional  sovereignty,  and 
was  one  amongst  the  first  to  engage  in  the  inaugura- 
tion of  the  Republican  movement.  Since  then  he  has 
been  second  to  no  one  in  his  efforts  to  promote  the 
interests  and  success  of  that  party.  During  the  ex- 
citing Presidential  contest  of  1856,  he  was  President 
of  the  Fremont  and  Dayton  Central  Union  Club,  in  the 
city  of  New  York,  and  during  the  past  three  years  has 
been  a member  of  the  Republican  State  Central  Com- 
mittee. 

Senator  Manierre  is  a gentleman  of  sterling  honesty 
and  integrity,  and  labors  assiduously  and  efficiently 
for  the  welfare  of  his  constituents,  ^and  the  general 
good  of  the  State.  He  possesses  a sound  judgment, 
with  a high  degree  of  general  intelligence,  and  has  a 
peculiar  faculty  of  mastering  figures  and  comprehend- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


SI 

ing  the  most  minute  details  of  our  financial  system. 
His  business  habits  are  eminently  correct,  which,  to- 
gether with  his  untiring  energy,  and  other  superior 
qualities,  fit  him  well  to  discharge  properly  the 
functions  of  a representative  position.  In  his  private 
character  he  is  perfectly  unexceptionable,  and  his  ex- 
cellent qualities  as  an  individual,  give  him  far  more 
than  ordinary  personal  as  well  as  political  popularity. 

Senator  Manierre  is  a man  of  family,  and  is  a mem- 
ber of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  as  well  as 
Superintendent  of  a Mission  Sabbath-school.  In  per- 
son he  is  somewhat  below  the  average  size  of  men, 
though  he  is  well  formed,  and  rather  prepossessing  in 
his  general  appearance.  He  has  light  hair  and  whis- 
kers, large  blue  eyes,  a prominent  forehead,  a smooth, 
generous-looking  face,  and  a bright,  intelligent  coun- 
tenance, which  indicates  a fine  mental  and  physical 
organization. 


CHARLES  C.  MONTGOMERY. 

Senator  Montgomery  was  born  in  the  town  of 
I Madrid,  St.  Lawrence  county,  N.  Y.,  on  the  19th  of 
August,  1818.  He  is  descended  from  New  England 
parents,  both  of  whom  were  natives  of  Vermont.  His 
maternal  grand-father,  Isaac  Bartholomew,  served  three 
years  in  the  Revolutionary  war.  His  father,  John 
Montgomery,  died  on  the  5th  of  May,  1843,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-three,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name 


88 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


was  Mary  Bartholomew,  died  on  the  Tth  of  June,  in 
the  same  year,  in  the  fifty-sixth  year  of  her  age. 

Senator  Montgomery  was  educated  at  the  St.  Law- 
rence Academy,  at  Potsdam,  St.  Lawrence  county, 
N.  Y.,  passing  through  only  an  English  course  of  study, 
and  pursued  the  business  of  teaching,  at  intervals,  for 
several  years.  In  February,  1842,  he  was  elected  a 
Justice  of  the  Peace  and  Inspector  of  Commpn  Schools 
in  his  native  place.  In  1845  he  was  chosen  Town  Su- 
perintendent of  Common  Schools,  but  resigned  the 
position  in  October  of  that  year,  and  went  to  South 
Carolina  for  his  health.  He  passed  the  winter  at  Jef- 
fries Creek,  Marion  district,  and  returned  home  in 
June,  1846,  with  his  health  somewhat  improved.  In 
1841  he  was  re-elected  Town  Superintendent,  and  again 
in  1850,  and  also  Justice  of  the  Peace.  He  had  studied 
law  in  the  office  of  James  Kedington,  at  Waddington, 
in  Madrid,  and  in  the  spring  of  1850  removed  to  Og- 
densburgh,  and  continued  the  study  of  the  law  in  the 
office  of  the  Hon.  Charles  G.  Myers,  present  Attorney 
General  of  the  State  of  New  York.  In  September  of 
that  year  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  returning 
to  Waddington,  commenced  the  practice  of  his  profes- 
sion. In  September,  1851,  in  company  with  a number^ 
of  his  townsmen,  he  went  to  California,  arriving  there 
in  November  following,  and  remained  there  about  two 
years  and  a half,  engaged  in  mining  in  the  vicinity  of 
Sonora,  Tuolumne  county.  He  returned  home  in 
April,  1854,  and  in  1855  was  re-elected  Town  Superin- 
tendent, holding  the  office  then,  until  abolished  in  1856. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


89 


In  185T  he  was  elected  Supervisor,  and  was  re-elected 
in  1858,  during  which  year  he  was  Chairman  of  the 
Board.  In  1859  he  was  again  elected,  and  was  honest 
and  faithful  in  the  fulfillment  of  his  duties  throughout 
his  official  term  of  service. 

Mr.  Montgomery  was  formerly  a Freesoil  Democrat, 
and  warmly  supported  Mr.  Van  Buren  for  the  Presi- 
dency, in  1848.  He  was  one  among  the  very  first, 
after  the  passage  of  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill,  to  en- 
gage in  the  formation  of  a party  to  resist  the  further 
extension  of  slavery  into  the  territories  of  the  United 
States  ; and  is  now  an  enthusiastic  and  industrious 
member  of  the  Kepublican  party.  He  is  highly  con- 
servative in  all  his  views  on  all  the  great  questions 
of  a State  or  National  character,  and,  although  acting 
with  his  party,  never  forgets  his  own  individuality  by 
abandoning  his  own  private  sentiments  and  feelings 
for  the  sake  of  preserving  peaceable  terms  with  his 
political  friends.  He  never  fails  to  act  in  his  legis- 
lative capacity  with  the  greatest  deference  to  the 
opinions  of  his  legislative  associates  ; but  no  party 
measure  can  secure  his  support  simply  as  such  ; it 
must  first  secure  something  else — the  approval  of  his 
judgment  and  good,  sound  sense  of  propriety.  He  is, 
without  doubt,  the  most  retiring  and  unpretending 
man  in  the  Senate,  in  his  general  habits  and  conduct. 
His  qualifications  as  a speaker  are  good,  when  he 
once  becomes  thoroughly  awakened  on  his  subject ; 
but,  unless  a matter  of  necessity,  he  never  indulges 
in  speech-making,  and  listens  with  great  deference  to 


90 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


the  opinions  of  his  legislative  compeers.  Still,  his 
qualities,  both  of  head  and  of  heart,  are  of  a supe- 
rior character,  and  he  is  not  only  honest  and  efiS- 
cient,  but  eminently  popular,  in  the  discharge  of  his 
duties  as  a legislator. 

Mr.  Montgomery  is  unmarried,  and  usually  attends 
the  Episcopal  Church.  In  person,  he  is  a large,  dig- 
nified, substantial-looking  man,  with  light-brown  hair, 
combed  back  from  a prominent  forehead  ; large,  blue 
eyes,  of  brilliant  lustre  ; a smooth,  intelligent,  good- 
natured  face,  with  firmness  and  decision  of  character 
largely  developed  in  its  features  ; and  a countenance 
whose  calmness  is  equal  to  a summer^s  eve,  and  whose 
expression  of  dignity  and  composure  no  excitement 
can  disturb. 


ALLEN  MUNROE. 

Senator  Munroe  was  born  on  the  10th  of  March, 
1819,  in  the  town  of  Elbridge,  Onondaga  county,  N.  Y. 
He  is  a younger  brother  of  the  Hon.  James  Munroe, 
who  represented  the  Twenty-second  district  in  the 
Senate  during  the  four  years  from  1852  to  1856.  His 
paternal  grand-father,  the  late  Hon.  Squire  Munroe, 
was  born  in  the  town  of  Kehoboth,  Bristol  county. 
Mass.,  on  the  2Ith  of  June,  1151.  He  was  the  oldest 
son  of  Nathan  Munroe,  and  his  grand-father,  William 
Munroe,  with  his  great-grandfather,  John  Munroe,  emi- 
grated from  Scotland  in  the  early  settlement  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


91 


America.  The  grand-mother  of  the  Senator  was  the 
grand-daughter  of  Col.Benj amin  Church,  a distinguished 
officer  in  King  Philip’s  war.  At  the  commencement  of 
the  Revolutionary  .war,  he  entered  the  service  of  his 
country,  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  and  continued  in  the 
army  some  three  years,  during  which  time  he  was  con- 
tinually exposed  to  dangers  and  hardships,  being 
located  directly  on  the  sea-board.  In  this  school  he 
took  so  deep  an  interest  in  the  welfare  of  his  country, 
that  the  principles  of  civil  and  religious  liberty  were 
firmly  rooted  into  his  political  sentiments  at  an  early 
period  of  his  life.  At  the  age  of  twenty-two  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Mary,  daughter  of  John  Daggett,  by  whom 
he  had  ten  children,  five  of  whom  are  now  living. 
After  various  vicissitudes  in  life,  he  became  possessed 
of  a small  farm  in  Lanesborough,  which,  in  1194,  he 
exchanged  for  the  farm  on  which  he  lived,  until  his 
death,  in  Camillus,  now  Elbridge,  Onondaga  county, 
N.  Y.  The  country  was  then  new,  and  land  very  cheap, 
the  natural  increase  of  which  in  value  at  the  time  of 
his  death  in  1835,  and  his  energetic  business  habits, 
had  made  him  a very  wealthy  farmer.  He  took  a deep 
interest  in  all  the  benevolent  objects  of  the  day,  and 
being  a firm  Baptist,  was  considered  a pillar  in  the 
church  to  which  he  belonged.  He  died  at  the  age  of 
seventy-eight.  • 

Senator  Munroe’s  father,  Nathan  Munroe,  died  on  the 
5th  of  July,  1839,  in  the  forty-ninth  year  of  his  age, 
and  his  mother  is  still  living  at  Syracuse.  He  was 
educated  at  the  Munroe  Academy,  an  institution  estab* 


92 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


lished  and  endowed  by  his  father,  in  his  native  village, 
fitting  himself  for  the  Junior  class  in  College,  but  at 
the  age  of  eighteen  he  was  placed  in  charge  of  an  ex- 
perienced merchant  in  the  city  of  Auburn,  to  be  taught 
the  mercantile  business. 

Three  years  afterwards,  in  the  spring  of  1840,  he 
engaged  in  business  on  his  own  responsibility,  on  the 
old  corner  in  the  village  of  Elbridge,  which  had  been 
so  long  occupied  by  his  father.  He  then  continued 
the  mercantile  trade  some  seven  years,  when  he 
married  Miss  Julia,  daughter  of  John  Townsend,  of 
Albany,  and  after  an  absence  of  nearly  a year  in 
Europe,  he  returned  and  settled  in  Syracuse,  where  he 
accepted  the  agency  of  the  property  of  the  surviving 
members  of  the  Syracuse  Company,  and  embarked  in 
milling  and  the  manufacture  of  solar  salt.  He  was 
elected  Mayor  of  the  city  of  Syracuse,  in  the  spring  of 
1854,  holding  the  position  one  year,  and  is  now  a 
Trustee  of  the  Munroe  Collegiate  Institute,  at  El- 
bridge, President  of  the  Onondaga  County  Savings 
Bank,  a Director  in  the  Bank  of  Salina,  a Trustee  of 
the  Asylum  for  Idiots  at  Syracuse,  a Trustee  of  the 
Asylum  for  Inebriates  at  Binghamton,  a Trustee  of  the 
Onondaga  County  Orphan  Asylum,  a Trustee  of  the 
Oakwood  Cemetery  at  Syracuse,  Vice-President  of  the 
Oswego  and  Syracuse  Railroad  Company,  a Director 
in  the  Gaslight  Company  of  that  city,  and  occupies 
various  other  public  positions  assigned  him  by  friends. 
In  the  fall  of  1859  he  was  brought  forward  with  unu- 
sual unanimity  as  a candidate  for  the  Senate,  and  was 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


93 


triumphantly  elected  by  a large  majority.  He  was 
formerly  a Whig,  but  was  one  among  the  first  to  enlist 
in  the  Republican  enterprise,  and  has  been  five  years 
a member  of  the  Whig,  and  then  the  Republican  State 
Committee.  He  is  clearly  a gentleman  of  sound 
common-sense  and  decisive  judgment,  and  is  highly 
intelligent,  cautious,  and  deliberate,  not  wishing  to 
give  offense,  and  yet  not  afraid  to  express  his  opinions. 
His  business  qualifications  are  of  a superior  order,  of 
which  his  success  in  life  is  a striking  evidence,  and 
he  carries  with  him  into  the  discharge  of  his  legisla- 
tive duties  the  same  amount  of  industry,  economy,  and 
systematic  arrangement  for  which  he  is  distinguished 
in  private  life.  There  is  method  in  every  thing  he 
does,  and  he  engages  in  every  thing  with  a mathe- 
matical precision  that  is  always  the  sure  harbinger  of 
unmistakable  success. 

Senator  Munroe  attends  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church,  and  is  a man  of  great  personal  popularity.  In 
person,  he  is  tall  and  rather  slender,  has  clear  sky- 
blue  eyes,  hair  and  whiskers  of  a medium  shade  be- 
tween a golden  color  and  the  darkest  brown,  and  a 
pleasant,  good-natured  face. 


JOHN  McLEOD  MUEPHY. 

Senator  Murphy  is  a native  of  North  Castle,  West- 
chester county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  was  born  on  the  14th 
of  February,  1821.  He  sprung  from  genuine  Irish  and 


94 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Knickerbocker  Dutch  ancestry,  and  is  a lineal  descend- 
ant, on  his  maternal  side,  of  the  celebrated  family  of 
Waldegraves,  in  England.  His  paternal  grand-father, 
John  Murphy,  emigrated  from  Wexford  shortly  after 
the  Revolution,  and  settled  in  the  Seventh  Ward,  in 
the  city  of  New  York,  where  he  established  himself 
as  a brewer,  and  his  maternal  grand-father,  George 
Warner,  the  sail-maker,  was  well  and  favorably  known 
amongst  the  old  Knickerbocker  families  of  Manhattan 
Island.  His  father,  Thomas  Murphy,  who  died  in  New 
York,  on  the  15th  of  July,  1853,  at  the  age  of  fifty-six, 
represented  Westchester  county  in  the  Legislature,  in 
1831,  and  was  the  cotemporary  of  such  men  as  Daniel 
S.  Dickinson,  William  L.  Marcy,  John  A.  Dix,  Millard 
Fillmore,  Silas  Wright,  and  others,  who  have  since 
made  their  mark  in  the  political  records  of  the  State. 
His  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Maria  S.  Warner, 
died  at  Haverstraw,  on  the  3d  of  June,  1839,  at  the 
comparatively  early  age  of  thirty-six.  His  family 
were  for  a long  time  residents  of  Westchester  county, 
whence  they  removed,  in  1835,  to  Rockland  county, 
where  they  located  on  a farm  near  Stony  Point. 

Senator  Murphy  was  educated  in  the  United  States 
Navy,  which  he  entered  in  February,  1841.  He  served 
four  years  and  eight  months  in  the  Mediterranean, 
under  Flag  Officer  Tatnall,  now  in  command  of  the 
East  India  squadron,  and  during  that  period  visited 
Italy,  Greece,  France,  Spain,  Austria,  and  the  Barbary 
coast.  He  then  passed  a short  time  at  the  United 
States  Naval  Academy,  after  which  he  was  detailed 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


95 


for  the  frigate  United  States,  and  served  a year  on  the 
west  coast  of  Africa,  with  the  late  Dr.  Kane.  Keturn- 
ing  to  New  York,  he  commenced  the  study  of  the  law, 
hut  the  Mexican  war  having  broken  out  in  the  inter- 
val of  his  absence,  he  abandoned  Blackstone  and  Kent, 
for  the  more  exciting  scenes  of  the  war,  and  was  sent 
to  Vera  Cruz.  Throughout  all  the  events  of  that 
memorable  struggle,  he  bore  an  active  part,  and  was 
put  in  charge  of  a field-piece,  at  the  capture  of  Tobasco, 
under  Commodore  Perry,  whose  official  reports  bear 
testimony  to  his  services  and  gallantry.  At  the  close 
of  the  war  he  was  again  sent  to  the  Naval  Academy, 
where  he  graduated  with  distinction,  in  July,  1848. 
He  shortly  afterwards  published  a work,  entitled 
‘‘Nautical  Routine  and  Stowage,”  with  short  rules  in 
navigation,  which  has  become  the  text-book  of  the 
United  States  Navy,  and  which  exhibits  a high  degree 
of  literary  talent,  as  well  as  a. thorough  knowledge  of 
his  subject. 

When  the  Collins  steamers  were  projected.  Senator 
Murphy  was  detailed  by  the  Administration  of  Presi- 
dent Taylor  as  a watch  officer  on  board  the  Atlantic,  in 
which  vessel  he  successfully  served  some  eight  months. 
When  the  expedition  for  the  survey  of  the  Isthmus  of 
Tehuantepec  was  being  organized,  in  November,  1850, 
he  was  engaged  as  Hydrographic  Assistant  under  Ma- 
jor Barnard,  and  was  confided  with  the  Botanical  and 
Statistical  labors  of  the  expedition.  After  the  lapse 
of  a year  in  Mexico,  he  again  returned  to  New  York, 
and  resigned  from  the  Navy,  with  a view  of  pursuing 


96 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


the  open  and  comprehensive  field  of  civil  engineering, 
for  which  his  experience  in  Mexico,  under  the  auspices 
of  one  of  the  ablest  engineers  in  the  army,  had,  in  a 
great  measure,  prepared  him.  In  1853,  however,  Presi- 
dent Pierce,  sent  him  to  Mexico  on  a confidential  mis- 
sion, to  aid  in  the  negotiation  of  the  Messilla  purchase, 
and  after  its  successful  issue,  again  returned  to  the 
United  States,  and  renewed  the  struggle  for  the  mas- 
tery of  his  profession.  Mingling  occasionally  in  the 
political  contests  of  the  day,  but  always  clinging  to 
the  cause  of  Democracy,  he  was  an  unsuccessful  can- 
didate for  Congress  in  the  Sixth  District,  in  1854,  and 
ran  unsuccessfully  for  the  State  Senate  in  the  follow- 
ing year.  His  defeat,  however,  in  both  instances  was 
the  result  of  an  irreconcilable  division  in  the  ranks  of 
the  Democratic  party. 

On  the  accession  of  Mr.  Wood  to  the  Mayoralty, 
in  the  city  of  New  York,  Senator  Murphy  was  ap- 
pointed a City  Surveyor,  and  was  subsequently  trans- 
ferred, through  the  instrumentality  of  the  Hon.  John 
Kelly,  to  the  position  of  Constructing  Engineer  at  the 
Brooklyn  Navy  Yard,  where  he  served  with  credit  to 
himself  and  satisfaction  to  the  entire  party  for  more 
than  a year.  In  July,  1858,  he  was  appointed  by  the 
Louisiana  Tehuantepec  Company,  of  New  Orleans,  as 
Superintending  Engineer,  for  the  opening  of  the  Te- 
huantepec route,  and  succeeded  by  his  unremitting  en- 
ergy and  professional  skill  in  the  accomplishment  of 
that  object.  On  his  return  to  New  York,  he  delivered 
a series  of  important  and  valuable  lectures  on  Mexican 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


97 


Archasology,  and  other  kindred  subjects,  which  called 
forth  the  highest  encomiums  of  the  press  and  the 
scientific  societies.  Subsequently  he  returned  to  the 
Isthmus,  and  conducted  the  explorations  of  the  Pacific 
coast  of  Mexico,  the  surveys  of  Guatulco,  &c.  He 
was  brought  forward  at  the  last  election,  with  flatter- 
ing unanimity,  for  the  seat  he  fills  in  the  Senate,  and 
was  elected  by  . a handsome  vote.  He  is  one  of  the 
most  quiet  and  unpretending  men  in  the  Legislature, 
but  discharges  the  duties  of  his  position  with  distin- 
guished ability  and  success. 

Senator  Murphy  was  married  in  November,  1848,  to 
Miss  Mary  Teresa  Mooney,  of  the  city  of  New  York, 
and  belongs  to  the  Catholic  Church.  He  maintains  a 
high  social  position  throughout  the  city  of  his  resi- 
dence, and  is  altogether  unsurpassed  in  his  personal 
as  well  as  in  his  political  popularity. ' 


PETER  P.  MURPHY. 

Senator  Murphy  is  the  oldest  man  in  the  Senate. 
He  was  born  on  the  18th  of  July,  1801,  in  the  city  of 
Albany,  and  is  of  Irish  and  German  extraction.  His 
paternal  grand-father,  Patrick  Murphy,  came  to  Ame- 
rica as  early  as  1750,  and  settled  in  the  Mohawk 
valley,  while  another  portion  of  the  family  established 
themselves  south  of  what  is  now  known  as  Mason  and 
Dixon’s  line.  He  had  two  sons,  who  participated  in 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


the  struggle  for  American  Independence,  one  of  whom 
was  wounded  at  Johnstown,  and  the  other  at  the 
battle  of  Oriskany.  Peter  Murphy,  the  father  of  the 
subject  of  this  sketch,  who  was  then  too  young  to 
participate  in  the  war,  died  in  1844,  at  about  the  age 
of  sixty-five,  and  his  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Catharine  O^Oonnell,  died  in  1846,  at  about  the  same 
age. 

Senator  Murphy  was  educated  at  the  Albany  Aca- 
demy. In  1820  he  removed  into  Herkimer  county, 
where  he  taught  awhile,  and  then  read  medicine,  in 
Cherry  Y alley,  with  Prof.  Joseph  White.  He  graduated 
in  1826,  and  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession 
in  the  town  of  Starks,  Herkimer  county.  Here  he  re- 
mained until  the  fall  of  1834,  when  he  was  elected  to 
the  lower  branch  of  the  Legislature,  and  in  the  spring 
of  1835,  removed  to  Niagara  county,  where  his  parents 
had  settled  in  1828;  He  took  up  his  residence  in 
Eoyalton,  in  that  county,  where  he  has  always  since 
been  successfully  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession. Politically,  he  was  originally  a Democrat  of 
the  old  Jeffersonian  school,  and  was  a delegate  to  the 
Democratic  State  Convention  in  1844,  which  nominated  " 
Silas  Wright  for  Governor.  In  1848,  when  the  ques- 
tion of  the  jurisdiction  of  Congress  over  slavery  in  the 
territories  of  the  United  States  was  first  agitated,  he 
took  sides  with  the  friends  of  the  Wilmot  Proviso,  and 
earnestly  supported  Mr.  Yan  Buren  for  the  Presidency. 
He  was  again  true  to  that  principle  in  1852,  when  he 
advocated  the  election  of  John  P.  Hale  as  a candidate 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


99 


for  the  Presidency,  and  was  a prominent  and  influential 
delegate  in  the  State  Convention,  at  which  the  present 
Kepuhlican  party  was  first  christened.  He  has  always 
since  then  been  true  and  unfaltering  in  his  attachment 
to  the  doctrines  and  policy  of  that  organization,  and 
had  the  honor  of  being  one  of  the  representatives  from 
the  Empire  State  in  the  National  Convention  at  Phil- 
adelphia, in  1856,  which  nominated  John  C.  Fremont 
as  a suitable  candidate  for  President  of  the  United 
States. 

Senator  Murphy  has  held  the  office  of  Supervisor  in 
the  town  in  which  he  resides.  After  the  expiration  of 
his  term  of  service  in  that  position,  he  never  occupied 
any  prominent  public  place  until  the  fall  of  1859,  when 
he  was  brought  forward  by  the  Republicans  of  the 
Twenty-ninth  Senatorial  district,  as  a candidate  for  the 
seat  he  now  occupies,  and  was  triumphantly  elected. 
He  has  always  taken  a deep  interest  in  politics,  par- 
ticipating actively  in  all  the  political  contests  of  the 
day,  and  exercises  a controlling  influence  over  the 
politics  of  his  own  and  the  adjoining  counties.  His 
fund  of  general  knowledge  is  unusually  large  ; there 
are  but  few  things  of  importance  that  he  apparently 
does  not  know  ; and  no  one  in  the  Senate  surpasses 
him  in  a thorough  and  minute  knowledge  of  the  poli- 
tical history  of  the  State  of  New  York.  His  almost 
unparalleled  and  intimate  acquaintance,  too,  with  the 
detailed  history  of  all  our  great  men,  and  the  various 
prominent  measures  that  have  agitated  the  country, 
during  the  past  three  quarters  of  a century,  reminds 


100 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


one  very  forcibly  of  John  Quincy  Adams,  and  he  is 
equally  fortunate  in  his  ability  to  use  that  knowledge, 
both  in  public,  and  in  the  private  and  social  circles  in 
which  he  moves.  He  is  not  a frequent  debater,  rarely 
participating,  at  any  considerable  length,  in  the  discus- 
sions of  the  Senate,  but  is  a rigid  reasoner — logical, 
seldom,  if  ever,  embellishing  his  speeches,  and  his  argu- 
ments are  always  sound,  practical,  concise,  and  con- 
vincing. 

Senator  Murphy  was  married  in  December,  1826,  to 
Miss  xVnna  Kayner,  and  was  reared  in  the  old  North 
Dutch  Church  in  the  city  of  Albany.  Physically,  he  is 
one  of  the  largest  men  in  the  Senate,  and  is  unequal- 
led by  any  of  his  legislative  associates  in  real  dignity 
of  manner,  congeniality  of  temper,  and  kindness  and 
hospitality  of  character. 


ERASTUS  S.  PROSSER. 

Senator  Prosser  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Westerlo, 
Albany  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  fifty  years  of  age.  He  is 
a self-educated  man,  having  enjoyed  only  the  means  of 
a very  limited  English  education,  and  while  compara- 
tively young,  removed  to  the  city  of  Albany,  where  he 
embarked  in  the  forwarding  trade.  After  remaining  in 
that  place  for  some  time,  he  located  in  the  city  of  Buf- 
falo, where  he  now  resides,  and  where  he  was  exten- 
sively and  successfully  engaged  in  the  forwarding 
business,  till  about  two  years  ago,  when  he  retired 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


101 


upon  an  ample  fortune.  He  possesses  fine  business 
capacities,  combined  with  untiring  industry  and  strict 
integrity,  and  is  wholly  indebted  to  his  own  unaided 
exertions  and  noble  aims  in  life,  for  the  eminent  and 
gratifying  success  with  which  he  has  thus  far  met. 

In  politics  Senator  Prosser  was  formerly  a Democrat, 
till  1848,  when  his  anti-slavery  proclivities  led  him 
into  the  support  of  Mr.  Van  Buren  for  the  Presidency. 
He  subsequently  joined  the  Pepublican  party,  and 
although  elected  to  his  present  position  by  a union  of 
Americans  and  Pepublicans,  still  claims  to  belong  to 
that  party,  and  acted  accordingly,  during  the  last  ses- 
sion of  the  Legislature,  and  thus  far  during  the  present 
session.  He  never  held  any  public  office  until  his  elec- 
tion to  the  Senate,  which  first  took  place  in  the  fall  of 
1858,  when  he  was  chosen  as  the  successor  of  the  Hon. 
James  Wadsworth,  who  resigned  his  seat  in  that  body 
shortly  after  the  adjournment  of  the  Legislature  in  the 
spring  of  that  year.  He  was  again  brought  forward 
as^the  American  and  Republican  candidate  at  the  last 
election,  and  was  triumphantly  elected  by  a handsome 
majority.  He  has  never  paid  much  attention  to  gene- 
ral politics,  in  his  close  confinement  to  his  duties  as 
a strict  business  man,  and,  outside  of  the  business 
world,  has  been  known  in  public  only  as  a zealous  and 
consistent  friend  of  the  canals.  His  long  experience  in 
the  forwarding  trade,  has  long  since  convinced  him  of 
the  necessity  and  advantage  of  the  speedy  enlarge- 
ment and  completion  of  these  great  channels  of  com- 
merce, and  the  deep  interest  which  he  has  always 


102 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES, 


taken  in  this  great  question  was  probably  the  only  in- 
ducement for  him  to  consent  to  become  a candidate  for 
the  position  he  now  occupies.  He  has  also  been 
industriously  engaged  in  the  enterprise  of  introducing 
steam  navigation  on  the  Erie  Canal,  and  looks  upon  it 
as  one  of  the  greatest  improvements  of  the  day  in 
canal  navigation.  During  the  last  session  of  the  Legis- 
lature, he  was  Chairman  of  the  Standing  Committee  on 
Canals  in  the  Senate,  as  well  as  Chairman  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  Manufactures,  and  rendered  the  people  of 
the  State  considerable  service  in  that  capacity. 

Senator  Prosser  has  a family,  and  is  personally,  as 
well  as  politically,  popular  among  all  who  know  him. 
His  whole  life  is  a striking  illustration  of  the  fact,  that 
a good  name,  founded  on  real  worth  of  character,  is  far 
beyond  any  thing  else  in  real  value,  and  far  better  is 
it  for  a young  man  to  begin  the  world  penniless,  with 
this  in  his  possession,  than  to  be  the  proprietor  of  vast 
estates  and  the  inheritor  of  paternal  fame,  with  neither 
the  disposition  nor  the  ability  to  maintain  them.  He 
cannot  become  wise,  nor  good,  nor  great,  by  proxy,  and 
the  sooner  he  ascertains  this  and  acts  upon  it,  the  bet- 
ter it  will  be  for  him. 

Senator  Prosser  is  rather  prepossessing  in  his  per- 
sonal appearance,  being  about  medium  in  height,  with 
an  active  frame,  sharp,  gray  eyes,  and  a bushy,  iron-gray 
beard : and  wears  a cheerful,  good-natured,  though 
dignified  and  somewhat  reserved  expression  upon  his 
countenance,  which,  at  once,  gives  assurance  of  the 
real  man. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


103 


JOSEPH  E.  EAMSEY. 

An  old  proverb  declares  that  articles  of  the  choicest 
value  are  always  done  up  in  small  packages.  So  it  is 
with  Senator  Eamsey,  who  is  the  smallest  man  in  the 
Senate,  if  not  in  the  entire  Legislature.  He  is  only 
five  feet  four  inches  in  height,  which  is  precisely  the 
stature  of  one  of  the  most  gifted  kings  of  France  ; is 
well  proportioned  ; of  active  temperament,  and  wears 
an  amiable  and  pleasant  face,  which  always  kindles 
with  a genial  smile  when  he  recognizes  his  friends. 

Senator  Ramsey  is  a native  of  Sharon,  Schoharie 
county,  N.  Y.  He  was  born  on  the  29th  of  January, 
1816,  and  is  therefore  upwards  of  forty-four  years  of 
age,  although  he  has  the  appearance  of  being  ten  years 
younger.  He  is  of  German  and  English  descent,  and 
is  the  son  of  a Methodist  clergyman,  Frederick  Ram- 
sey, who  is  a man  of  considerable  ability,  and  who 
has  now  attained  the  ripe  old  age  of  seventy-one. 
Both  he  and  his  wife,  the  mother  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  are  still  residing  in  Cobleskill,  Schoharie 
county. 

Senator  Ramsey  received  a good,  practical,  business 
education,  and  after  spending  some  time  as  a clerk  in 
the  mercantile  trade,  removed,  at  the  age  of  twenty- 
five,  to  Lawyersville,  in  his  native  county,  where  he 
studied  law  with  Jedediah  Miller,  and  where  he  has 
always  since  been  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession. He  was  a member  of  the  Assembly  in  1855, 


104 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


and  in  the  fall  of  the  same  year  was  nominated  as  a 
candidate  for  the  Senate,  by  the  Republicans  of  the 
Fourteenth  district,  and  was  elected.  During  the  two 
succeeding  years,  he  was  a member,  in  that  body,  of  the 
Railroad  and  other  important  committees,  and  estab- 
lished his  reputation  as  a very  industrious  and  efficient 
legislator.  After  the  expiration  of  his  services  in  the 
Senate,  he  went  back  to  the  practice  of  his  profession, 
but  was  soon  induced  to  almost  wholly  abandon  it,  for 
the  time  being,  by  the  very  deep  interest  he  took  in 
the  passage  of  a law  appropriating  a certain  amount 
of  money  to  the  completion  of  the  Albany  and  Susque- 
hanna Railroad.  His  efforts,  however,  having  been 
temporarily  defeated  in  the  matter  by  the  conduct  of 
the  Governer  in  his  veto  of  a bill  of  that  kind,  after  it 
had  passed  both  branches  of  the  last  Legislature,  he 
appealed  to  the  people,  and  was  triumphantly  elected, 
upon  that  issue,  to  the  seat  he  again  occupies  in  the 
Senate.  A similat  measure  has  again  already  passed 
that  branch  of  the  Legislature,  but  it  is  exceedingly 
doubtful  as  to  whether  it  will  finally  become  a law 
during  the  present  session  of  that  body. 

In  politics.  Senator  Ramsey  was  formerly  a Whig  of 
Freesoil  tendencies,  and  at  the  disorganization  of  that 
body,  became  a staunch  supporter  of  the  cause  of  Re- 
publicanism. He  was  a delegate  to  the  first  Repub- 
lican State  Convention  that  ever  assembled  in  New 
York,  and  has  always  since  then  been  active,  ener- 
getic, and  devoted  in  his  advocacy  of  that  party.  His 
ability  as  a lawyer  and  as  a legislator  is  far  above 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


105 


mediocrity,  and  he  is  a fluent  and  sensible  speaker, 
wielding,  at  all  times,  no  inconsiderable  influence  upon 
the  deliberations  of  the  body  to  which  he  belongs.  He 
possesses  a social  temperament  ; enjoys  a large  share 
of  personal  as  well  as  political  popularity  ; and  is  a 
general  favorite  among  all  classes  of  people  at  Albany. 

Senator  Ramsey  was  married  in  March,  1836,  to 
Miss  Sarah  S,  Boyce,  a lady  of  superior  intellectual 
and  moral  worth,  and  attends  the  Reformed  Hutch 
Church. 


VOLNEY  RICHMOND. 

Senator  Richmond  was  born  in  the  town  of  Hoosick, 
Rensselaer  county,  N.  Y.,  on  the  23d  of  June,  1802. 
He  is  of  English  extraction.  His  great-great-grand- 
parents  came  from  England,  and  settled  in  the  colony 
of  Massachusetts.  He  is  the  youngest  of  seven 
brothers  and  twelve  children.  His  father,  Edward 
Richmond,  who  died  in  Hoosick  in  the  year  1821,  at 
the  advanced  age  of  seventy-one,  was  a Revolutionary 
soldier,  and  served  in  the  war,  with  considerable  gal- 
lantry and  distinction,  during  a period  of  five  years. 
His  wife,  the  mother  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Olive  Briggs,  died  about  ten 
years  afterwards,  at  the  ripe  old  age  of  seventy-nine. 

Senator  Richmond  was  brought  up  on ‘a  farm  be- 
longing to  his  father,  who  was  an  honest  and  indus- 
trious mechanic,  and  was  educated  in  the  common 
\ 5 ^ 


106 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


schools  of  his  native  town.  At  the  age  of  eighteen 
he  went  to  the  wagon  and  carriage-making  trade,  and 
after  completing  his  apprenticeship,  engaged  in  the 
business  on  his  own  responsibility,  in  his  native  place. 
He  was  then  successfully  so  employed  during  an  unin- 
terrupted period  of  twelve  years,  after  which  he  kept 
a hotel  until  1840,  when  he  was  elected  Sheriff  of 
Eenssalaer  county,  and  removed  to  the  city  of  Troy. 
He  occupied  this  position  during  the  full  term  of 
three  years,  and  during  the  following  three  years 
was  engaged  as  Under-sheriff  of  the  county.  Mean- 
while, he  was  three  years  Supervisor,  and  was  a 
member  of  the  Common  Council  some  four  years. 
In  185t  he  was  a member  of  the  Assembly,  and  occu- 
pied a prominent  position  in  that  body,  as  a member 
of  the  Committee  on  Banks,  and  the  Sub-Committee  of 
Sixteen. 

In  1848  he  embarked  in  the  stove  foundry  business, 
in  Troy,  which  he  followed  extensively  some  seven 
years,  and  after  spending  six  months  in  Europe,  re- 
turned to  Hoosick,  where  he  has  always  since  been 
quietly  pursuing  his  occupation  as  a farmer.  In  the 
fall  of  1851,  he  was  brought  forward  by  the  Republi- 
cans of  his  district  with  great  unanimity,  as  a candi- 
date for  the  position  he  now  holds  in  the  Senate,  but 
through  the  inactivity  of  his  friends,  who  were  san- 
guine of  his  success,  he  was  defeated,  by  a very  small 
majority,  by  his  opponent.  Judge  Willard,  of  Troy. 
He  was  again  brought  forward  as  a candidate  for  the 
Senate  at  the  last  election,  as  the  opposing  candidate 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


lot 


of  Judge  Willard,  who  was  again  placed  in  the  field, 
and  was  triumphantly  elected  by  a large  majority. 
He  was  formerly  a Whig,  and  a great  admirer  of  the 
immortal  Clay,  adhering  with  unyielding  tenacity  to 
the  fortunes  of  that  party,  until  it  abandoned  its  or- 
ganization, when  he  became  a Republican.  He  has 
always  sustained  the  reputation  thoughout  Rensselaer 
county,  of  an  active,  thorough-going,  and  successful 
politician,  and  has  generally  wielded  a strong  influ- 
ence among  all  classes  of  people,  wherever  he  has 
been  known.  In  addition  to  this,  he  is  well  known  as 
an  enterprising  and  successful  business  man,  possess- 
ing a sound,  practical  judgment  and  a thorough 
knowledge  of  human  nature,  and  has  never  failed  to 
prosecute  all  his  business  enterprises  with  determined 
vigor  and  signal  success.  His  chief  characteristics  are 
firmness  of  purpose,  integrity  of  character,  devotion 
to  principle,  and  a ceaseless  ambition  to  excel  in  what- 
ever is  praise-worthy,  honorable,  and  advantageous 
to  his  fellow-citizens  generally.  His  general  habits 
are  plain,  simple,  and  unpretending.  He  makes  no 
efibrts  at  speech-making,  being  a practical  working 
man,  but  ranks  high  among  the  most  prominent,  in- 
dustrious, and  efiScient  members  of  the  Senate. 

Senator  Richmond  was  married,  in  1828,  at  Han- 
cock, Massachusetts,  to  Miss  Lucy  Townsend,  who 
died  in  1836,  and  was  again  married,  in  1838,  to  Miss 
Mary  Barnett.  He  attends  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
and  is  kind  and  generous  in  his  support  of  religious 
objects. 


108 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


He  is  a man  of  medium  height,  with  a comparatively 
large,  compact,  and  substantial  frame  ; has  light- 
brown  hair,  partially  gray,  with  a slight  baldness  on 
the  crown  of  the  head  ; small  hazel  eyes  ; a round, 
full,  fresh  face  ; and  a dignified,  calm,  though  good- 
natured  countenance,  which  is  calculated  to  conciliate 
friends  among  all  classes  of  men. 


HEZEKIAH  D.  ROBERTSON. 

Senator  Robertson  was  born  in  the  town  of  Bed- 
ford, Westchester  county,  N.  Y.,  on  the  15th  of  De- 
cember, 1828.  He  is  of  Scotch  and  German  descent, 
and  is  a cousin  of  ex-Senator  William  H.  Robertson, 
who  represented  the  same  district  as  that  now  repre- 
sented by  the  subject  of  our  sketch,  during  the  years 
1854  and  ’55,  and  who  is,  at  present.  County  Judge 
of  Westchester  county.  His  maternal  grand-father, 
Hezekiah  Dykeman,  was  a captain  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary war,  and  was  distinguished  for  his  courage 
and  patriotism. 

Senator  Robertson  received  an  academical  education 
in  his  native  town,  purposing,  at  the  close  of  an  intended 
collegiate  course,  to  enter  the  legal  profession,  but  the 
sudden  death  of  both  his  parents  induced  him  to  devote 
himself  to  agricultural  pursuits.  He  commenced 
farming  in  the  town  of  Poundridge  ; at  the  age  of 
twenty-one,  was  elected  Superintendent  of  Schools, 


BIOGRArillCAL  SKETCHES. 


109 


and  at  the  close  of  his  official  term,  Supervisor  of  that 
town.  In  1853  he  removed  to  Bedford,  and  engaged 
in  the  mercantile  business  with  Benjamin  I.  Ambler, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Ambler  & Robertson.  In 
1859,  the  copartnership  was  dissolved,  Mr.  Robertson 
retiring  from  the  firm.  Immediately  upon  his  removal 
to  Bedford,  he  was  chosen  Superintendent  of  Schools 
in  that  town,  and  subsequently,  for  three  years,  was 
elected  Supervisor,  which  position  he  still  holds. 
Originally  a devoted  follower  of  Henry  Clay,  he  be- 
came, at  the  outset  of  its  organization,  a prominent 
member  of  the  American  party,  to  the  vital  principles 
of  which  he  still  adheres.  Always  a determined  Whig, 
he  has,  during  his  whole  political  career,  illustrated, 
by  his  acts,  the  sincerity  of  the  views  he  has  main- 
tained. It  is  mainly  owing  to  his  efforts,  that  the 
Union  party,  which  has  been  so  successful  in  West- 
chester county,  was  formed.  As  a citizen  of  the  Ninth 
Congressional  District,  he  advocated  and  secured,  at 
the  hands  of  the  Americans,  the  renomination  and 
election  of  the  Hon.  John  B.  Haskin,  to  his  seat  in  the 
present  Congress.  His  sympathies  and  proclivities 
since  the  campaign  of  1858,  have  been  with  the  Re- 
publicans, agreeing  with  them,  substantially,  on  all 
questions  of  national  interest. 

In  1856,  Senator  Robertson  was  the  nominee  of  the 
Americans  of  the  First  Assembly  district  of  West- 
chester county,  for  a seat  in  the  Assembly,  but,  al- 
though receiving  fifteen  hundred  votes,  was  defeated 
by  the  Republican  candidate.  He  was  elected  to  his 


no 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


present  position  by  a majority  of  over  eighteen  hun- 
dred, the  Democratic  State  ticket  receiving  a majority 
of  two  thousand  in  his  district.  He  was  nominated  by 
the  Americans,  and  unanimously  indorsed,  in  Conven- 
tion, by  the  Eepublicans  and  anti-Lecompton  Demo- 
crats. 

Senator  Robertson  was  reared  in  the  Baptist  Church, 
and  is  still  an  attendant  upon  its  services.  He  is  un- 
married ; is  of  medium  size  ; has  light-brown  hair  and 
whiskers,  and  intelligent  blue  eyes. 

He  is  an  energetic  man  and  an  active  politician. 
Recognizing,  in  its  fullest  and  most  comprehensive 
signification,  the  truth  of  the  old  adage,  Labor  omnia 
vincitj^^  he  never  relaxes  his  efforts,  whatever  obstacles 
are  cast  in  his  way,  in  accomplishing  whatever  he 
undertakes.  An  earnest  debater  and  a ready  speaker, 
he  neither  courts  nor  avoids  a discussion  of  his  views. 
He  is  always  found  ready  to  defend  whatever  position 
he  takes  ; and  his  opponents  will  not  fail  to  recognize 
in  him  “ a foeman  worthy  of  their  steel.’’  As  a legis- 
lator he  has  few  equals,  and  as  a business  man 
scarcely  a superior.  His  most  striking  characteristic 
is  his  intense  and  unalterable  devotion  to  his  personal 
friends.  He  has  been  justly  assigned  to  the  front  rank 
among  the  rising  young  men  of  our  State,  and  at  no 
distant  day  will  make  his  mark  as  a public  man. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Ill 


FEANCIS  M.  EOTCH. 

Senator  Eotch  is  a native  of  New  Bedford,  Mass., 
where  he  was  born  on  the  20th  of  February,  1822. 
His  father,  Francis  Eotch,  a gentleman  distinguished 
everywhere  for  his  kindness  and  benevolence  toward 
the  poor,  is  of  English  descent,  his  great-grandfather, 
Joseph  Eotch,  having  emigrated  to  this  country  from 
Salsbury,  England,  early  in  the  eighteenth  century, 
and  settled  in  Nantucket.  His  son  was  the  owner  of 
the  ship  Dartmouth^  from  which  the  tea  was  thrown 
overboard  by  the  famous  Boston  Tea  Party  f and  as 
the  consignees  refused  to  give  up  the  bills  of  lading 
or  pay  the  freight,  the  loss  fell  heavily  upon  him,  thus 
making  him  one  among  the  very  first  to  suffer  in  the 
great  cause  of  American  Independence.  The  maiden 
name  of  the  mother  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
Morgan,  and  her  family  were  among  the  earliest  resi- 
dents of  the  city  of  Philadelphia. 

In  1831  Senator  Eotch  removed,  with  his  parents,  to 
the  State  of  New  York,  and  settled  in  the  town  where 
he  now  resides,  in  the  county  of  Otsego:  He  received 
a thorough  collegiate  education,  having  graduated  in 
1841  at  “ Old  Harvard,’’  but  pursued  his  course  chiefly 
with  a view  to  the  pursuit  of  agriculture,  and  its 
kindred  sciences  of  chemistry,  botany,  &c.,  which  have 
always  been  his  favorite  studies,  and  to  which  he  has 
devoted  his  time,  principally,  since  leaving  college. 
In  1843  he  sailed  for  Europe,  and  remained  abroad 


112 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


some  three  years,  visiting  not  only  the  countries  in 
the  usual  route  of  tourists,  but  also  Spain,  Morocco, 
Turkey,  Greece,  and  Asia  Minor.  Since  then,  he  has, 
likewise,  made  several  brief  visits  to  England  and 
France,  chiefly  with  reference  to  his  favorite  pursuit 
of  agriculture.  He  was  for  some  time  President  of 
the  Agricultural  Society  of  the  town  where  he  resides, 
and  was  the  first  President,  under  the  new  organiza- 
tion, of  the  Agricultural  Society  of  Otsego  County, 
besides  occupying,  for  some  years,  the  position  of  one 
of  the  Vice-Presidents  of  the  New  York  State  Agricul- 
tural Society. 

Senator  Potch  never  occupied  any  prominent  public 
position  until  his  election  to  the  seat  he  now  fills  in 
the  Senate.  In  1851,  he  was  unanimously  presented, 
by  his  own  county,  as  a candidate  for  the  position,  but 
after  a contest  of  twenty-four  hours  in  the  Nominating 
Convention,  with  the  Hon.  A.  H.  Laflin,  late  Senator 
from  that  district,  he  withdrew,  in  favor  of  the  latter, 
who  was  presented  as  a candidate  with  equal  unanimi- 
ty  by  the  delegates  from  his  county,  and  who  was, 
thereupon,  unanimously  nominated.  After  the  expira- 
tion of  Senator  Ladings  term  of  office,  however,  in  the 
fall  of  1859,  he  received  the  unanimous  nomination  of 
the  Republican  Senatorial  Convention  of  his  district, 
and  was  triumphantly  elected  to  his  present  position 
by  a majority  of  twenty-five  hundred,  running  far 
ahead  of  his  ticket  in  his  own  county.  In  politics,  he 
was  formerly  a Whig,  adhering  firmly  to  that  party 
while  it  had  an  organization,  but  was  among  the  first 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


113 


to  engage  in  the  Republican  movement.  He  possesses 
but  little  taste  for  the  turmoil  and  strife  usually  inci- 
dent to  the  party  politics  of  the  present  day,  but  has 
a thorough,  comprehensive  knowledge  of  every  thing 
pertaining  to  the  character  and  general  history  of 
our  State  and  National  government,  and  is  doubtless 
eminently  well  qualified  for  an  intelligent  and  faithful 
discharge  of  the  legislative  responsibilities  wfith  which 
the  good  people  of  his  district  have  intrusted  him. 

In  person.  Senator  Rotch  is  a gentleman  of  elegant 
figure.  He  is  of  about  medium  height,  with  wavy, 
dark-brown  hair,  blue  eyes,  a light  goatee,  and  mus- 
tache a la  Francaise^  and  a face  whose  finely-formed 
and  distinctly-marked  features,  indicate  at  once  a re- 
fined and  cultivated  intellect,  and  a shrewd,  sagacious 
business  man  and  politician.  He  is  sociable  and  frank 
in  his  manners  ; kind-hearted,  generous,  and  hospita- 
ble ; and  is  deservedly  popular  among  all  his  legisla- 
tive associates. 


WALTER  L.  SESSIONS. 

Senator  Sessions  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Leister, 
Addison  county,  Vermont.  He  was  born  on  the  4th 
of  October,  1820,  and  is,  therefore,  nearly  forty  years 
of  age.  While  yet  a mere  boy,  he  removed  with  his 
parents,  into  Chautauqua  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  has 
always  since  resided.  His  early  educational  advan- 
tages were  not  very  good,  his  parents  having  been 


114 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


poor ; but,  by  industry  and  perseverance,  he  succeed- 
ed in  passing  successfully  through  the  course  usually 
prescribed  by  the  academies  of  the  country,  and  is 
now  a gentleman  of  considerable  literary  attainment. 
He  subsequently  entered  a law  office,  gaining  ad- 
mission to  the  bar,  after  passing  through  the  custom- 
ary course  of  legal  studies,  and  has  since  then  been 
engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profession.  His  reputa- 
tion in  the  community  in  which  he  resides,  is  that  of  a 
lawyer  of  more  than  ordinary  ability,  and  he  is  said 
to  have  met  with  more  than  ordinary  success  as  a 
practitioner  at  the  bar. 

The  public  career  of  Senator  Sessions  may  be  said 
to  have  first  commenced  in  1853,  when  he  was  an 
active  member  of  the  Assembly  from  Chautauqua 
county.  He  was  re-elected  to  that  body  in  the  fall  of 
the  same  year,  and  in  the  Whig  caucus,  held  on  the 
eve  of  the  opening  of  the  following  session  of  the 
Legislature,  was  a strong  friend  of  the  Hon. 
Eobert  H.  Pruyn,  of  Albany,  as  a candidate  for 
Speaker,  against  the  Hon.  He  Witt  C.  Littlejohn,  the 
present  incumbent  of  that  position.  The  former 
represented  the  Freesoil  element  in  the  caucus,  and 
the  latter  the  more  conservative,  or  old  line  portion  of 
the  party,  but  Mr.  Pruyn  succeeded,  and  having 
been  chosen  Speaker,  placed  Mr.  Sessions  at  the 
head  of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Ways  and  Means, 
as  a reward,  doubtless,  for  his  services  in  the  contest. 
With  what  success  he  discharged  the  duties  of  that 
position  but  little  is  known,  though,  judging  from  his 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


115 


conceded  financial  ability,  it  can,  no  doubt,  be  safely 
inferred,  that  lie  reflected  quite  as  much  distinction  on 
the  office  as  it  did  upon  him. 

After  the  expiration  of  the  legislative  term  of  Sen- 
ator Sessions,  in  1854,  he  returned  to  the  shades  of 
private  life,  contenting  himself  with  the  quiet  pursuit 
of  his  profession  until  the  fall  of  1859,  when  he  came 
forward  as  a candidate  in  the  Eepublican  Senatorial 
Convention  of  the  Thirty-second  district,  for  the  seat 
he  now  occupies.  The  contest  was  spirited  and  pro- 
tracted, his  opponent  persistently  contesting  every 
prospect  of  success,  however  slight,  and  it  was  not 
until  after  a large  number  of  ballotings  had  been  taken, 
that  Mr.  Sessions  received  the  nomination.  The  con- 
vention having  adjourned,  he  immediately  entered  the 
field,  working  steadily  and  perseveringly  throughout 
the  entire  campaign,  and  had  the  gratification  of  com- 
ing out  of  the  struggle  with  triumphant  success. 

Politically,  as  has  already  been  intimated,  he  began 
his  career  as  a member  of  the  old  Whig  party.  His 
sentiments  and  feelings  have  always  been  thoroughly 
tinctured  with  strong  Freesoilism,  which  naturally 
enough  caused  him  to  identify  himself  with  the  ex- 
treme anti-slavery  branch  of  that  party,  and  after  the 
passage  of  the  Kansas-Nebraska  bill  by  Congress  in 
1854,  he  did  not  hesitate  a moment  to  take  his  position 
on  the  Eepublican  platform,  to  the  principles  of  which 
he  has  always  since  firmly  adhered.  He  has  always 
participated  actively  in  the  politics  of  his  own  and  the 
adjoining  counties,  and  by  his  industry,  integrity,  and 


116 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


personal  popularity,  has  succeeded  in  acquiring  con- 
siderable political  influence  in  the  section  of  the  State 
in  which  he  resides.  Although  ambitious  of  worldly 
fame,  he  lacks  the  most  essential  elements  of  real 
greatness,  and  has,  perhaps,  now  ascended  the  ladder 
of  political  distinction  as  far  as  he  will  ever  get.  . He 
is  a natural  talker,  an  irrepressible  speaker — fluent 
and  facile  on  all  subjects,  but  inclined  to  remain  of  his 
own  opinion,  notwithstanding  any  arguments  or  per- 
suasions, coming  from  what  quarter  they  may.  In 
temper  and  disposition  he  is  pyrotechnic,  occasionally 
displaying  a blaze  of  rockets  during  the  debates  of  the 
Senate,  and  had  he  been  born  south  of  Mason  and 
Dixon^s  line,  would  certainly  have  been  inclined  to 
afliliate  with  the  extreme  fire-eaters  of  that  section  of 
the  Union. 

In  person.  Senator  Sessions  is  of  middle  height,  with 
a good  figure,  a square  forehead,  black  hair  and  beard, 
shaven  on  the  upper  lip,  black  eyes,  and  features  of 
the  ordinary  New  England  mould,  touched  with  a show 
of  firmness,  resolute  will,  and  subtlety. 


FRANCIS  B.  SPINOLA. 

Senator  Spinola  is  now  serving  his  second  term  in 
the  Senate,  having  been  first  elected  to  that  body  in 
the  fall  of  185T.  During  the  last  and  preceding  ses- 
sions of  the  Legislature,  he  served  successfully  on  the 
standing  Committees  on  Privileges  and  Elections,  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


in 


Internal  Affairs  of  Towns  and  Counties.  His  experience 
as  a legislator  has  been  diligently  improved,  and  he  is 
never  at  a loss  for  a rule  by  which  to  support  and  en- 
force a point  of  order.  No  one  in  the  Senate,  perhaps, 
is  more  prompt  in  off-hand,  unpremeditated  speech, 
and  none  more  troublesome  to  the  majority  when  any 
political  party-measure  is  under  consideration.  He  is 
constantly  in  his  seat,  and  entitles  himself,  as  much  by 
his  diligence  and  industry,  as  by  his  abilities,  to  the 
confidence  of  the  important  constituency  he  has  the 
distinguished  honor  to  represent. 

Senator  Spinola  was  born  on  the  19th  of  March,  - 
1821,  at  Stony  Brook,  Suffolk  county,  N.  Y.  His 
father,  who  came  to  this  country  at  an  early  age,  to 
complete  his  education,  and  who  finally  settled  here, 
was  a native  of  the  island  of  Madeira,  and  his  paternal 
grand-father  was  an  Italian.  Both  his  mother  and  ma- 
ternal grand-mother  were  natives  of  Long  Island,  and 
his  maternal  grand-father,  who  served  through  the 
Revolutionary  war,  as  an  ofScer,  was  an  Irishman. 

In  early  life  Senator  Spinola  received  but  very  little 
schooling,  and  when  nearly  sixteen  years  of  age,  was 
apprenticed  to  the  trade  of  a jeweler.  He  served  his 
time  at  this  business,  until  he  was  twenty-one  years  of 
age,  when  he  abandoned  it,  on  account  of  an  unusual 
degree  of  inactivity  in  the  trade.  Being  an  extremely 
handy  youth,  he  then  turned  his  attention  to  black- 
smithing,  which  he  followed  nearly  a year,  when  he 
engaged  in  the  grocery  business.  After  pursuing  this 
occupation  a short  time,  he  engaged  himself  to  work 


118 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


at  the  carpenter^s  trade,  which  he  followed  nearly  a 
year,  when  he  was  appointed  an  Assistant  to  the  Clerk 
of  the  Common  Council  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  where 
he  then,  and  has  always  since,  resided.  This  post  he 
occupied  about  a year,  his  engagement  having  been 
only  for  a specific  amount  of  work,  which  he  had  com- 
pleted within  that  period,  and  he  then  became  a clerk 
in  the  office  of  the  Hon.  Cyrus  P.  Smith,  with  whom  he 
remained  a year.  Shortly  after,  he  was  appointed 
Assistant  Clerk  of  the  Common  Council,  which  position 
he  filled  until  he  was  elected  Alderman  from  the  Second 
-^Ward,  in  1846.  Hev/as  again  the  Whig  candidate  in 
the  following  year,  and  although  the  ward  had  always 
been  one  of  the  Democratic  strongholds,  he  was  defeat- 
ed by  only  one  vote.  In  the  following  spring,  how- 
ever, he  was  again  elected,  and  was  subsequently  re- 
elected four  different  times.  At  the  expiration  of  his 
term  of  office  as  Alderman,  he  was  elected  three  suc- 
cessive years  as  Supervisor,  and  in  the  fall  of  1855, 
was  the  successful  Democratic  candidate  in  his  district, 
for  the  Assembly.  In  1851  he  was  brought  forward 
by  the  Democrats  of  the  Third  district,  as  a candidate 
for  the  Senate,  and  was  triumphantly  elected  to  that 
body,  by  a large  majority,  over  the  combined  Kepub- 
lican  and  American  vote.  In  addition  to  all  these 
positions,  he  also  held  the  post  of  Harbor  Master  five 
years,  which  he  received  from  Gov.  Young,  and  has 
been  an  active  member  of  the  Fire  Department  for 
twenty  years,  filling  consecutively  all  the  different 
offices,  save  that  of  Chief  Engineer. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


119 


Senator  Spinola  commenced  his  political  career  as  a 
zealous  and  consistent  admirer  of  Henry  Clay,  and  con- 
tinued to  act  with  the  Whig  party,  until  it  resolved 
itself  out  of  existence,  when  his  conservative  views  on 
the  Slavery  question,  led  him  into  the  Democratic  ranks, 
where  he  has  always  since  steadily  remained.  He  was 
elected  a member  of  the  Whig  General  Committee, 
before  he  was  twenty-one  years  of  age,  in  the  city  of 
Brooklyn,  and  was  then,  as  he  is  now,  and  as  he  always 
has  been,  one  of  the  most  active  and  influential  party 
men  in  the  district  or  ward  where  he  resides.  He  is 
always  on  hand  on  election  day,  ready  to  devote  one 
day,  at  least,  to  the  service  of  his  country,  and  never 
fails  to  contribute  his  full  share  of  labor  to  the  success 
of  the  candidates  and  measures  of  the  party  to  which 
he  belongs. 

Senator  Spinola  is  married,  and  was  reared  in  the 
Episcopal  branch  of  the  Church.  In  person,  he  is  some- 
what above  the  medium  height ; has  a muscular,  elastic 
frame  ; dark  hair  and  complexion  ; sharp,  blue  eyes  ; 
smooth  face,  and  a frank,  good-natured  countenance. 


LYMAX  TRUMAN. 

Senator  Truman  is  emphatically  one  of  that  class  of 
men  whom  the  world  designate  “ self-made,’^  having 
arisen,  under  unusually  adverse  circumstances,  from 
quite  an  humble  condition  in  life  to  his  present  distin- 


120 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


guished,  public  and  private,  position  in  the  State. 
After  receiving  a few  months^  common  schooling,  he 
was  left  alone,  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  with  a widowed 
mother,  four  brothers  and  three  sisters,  younger  than 
himself,  without  any  means  scarcely  of  a support.  His 
father,  who  was  a farmer,  it  is  true,  left  them  in  the 
possession  of  the  place  upon  which  they  were  living  ; 
but  it  was  so  far  encumbered  as  almost  to  preclude 
the  possibility  of  their  retaining  it.  Nothing  daunted, 
however,  Lyman  went  to  work  like  a good  fellow,  and 
succeeded  in  supporting  the  family,  sending  the  child- 
ren, at  the  same  time,  to  school,  and  in  retaining  the 
farm,  until  all  claims  against  it  were  fully  paid,  to  the 
very  last  farthing.  In  accomplishing  this,  he  employed 
himself  in  various  ways,  until  he  was  twenty-four 
years  of  age,  when  he  became  a clerk  in  a store  in  an 
adjoining  town.  Here  he  remained  three  years  in  this 
capacity,  when  he  embarked  with  a partner  in  the 
mercantile  trade  for  himself,  and  continued  thus  en- 
gaged about  three  years.  He  then  purchased  his 
partner's  interest  in  the  establishment,  and  shortly 
after  took  his  three  younger  brothers  in  with  him  as 
partners.  About  this  time  he  purchased  a farm,  and 
presented  it  to  the  oldest  of  his  brothers,  who  had 
always  followed  the  plow.  He  was  succeeded  in  the 
mercantile  trade  about  two  years  since  by  his  brother- 
in-law,  and  has  since  then  been  engaged  with  his 
younger  brothers,  in  various  successful  enterprises. 
During  the  last  thirty-five  years  he  has,  likewise,  been 
a practical  raftsman,  and  has  never  failed  to  make  his 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES^ 


121 


annual  trip  down  the  Susquehanna  in  this  capacity. 
He  is  a man  of  sterling  integrity  and  untiring  energy  ; 
upright  and  honorable  in  all  his  dealings  ; and  occu- 
pies a prominent  position  among  the  business  men  in 
the  section  of  the  State  where  he  resides.  A few  years 
since  he  was  elected  President  of  the  Bank  of  Owego, 
an  institution  which  had  then  descended  to  almost  uni- 
versal discredit ; but  he  succeeded  in  placing  it  upon 
a sure  footing)  and  in  successfully  carrying  it  through 
all  the  financial  troubles  of  the  great  panic  of  1857. 
Indeed,  there  are  probably  few  better  business  men  in 
the  State  than  Lyman  Truman. 

Senator  TrUman  is  a native  of  Candor,  Tioga  county, 
N.  Y.,  and  is  of  English  and  Scotch  descent.  He  was 
born  on  the  2d  of  March,  1806,  and  is  therefore  now 
fifty-four  years  of  age.  Both  his  paternal  and  mater- 
nal grand-fathers  took  part  in  the  Revolutionary 
struggle,  and  the  latter  was  especially  prominent  in 
the  troubles  at  Stonington,  Conn.,  where  the  General 
Government  contracted  a debt  with  him,  which  was 
paid  only  a few  years  since.  Lyman^s  father,  Aaron 
Truman,  emigrated  from  Massachusetts  to  New  York, 
in  1804,  and  settled  in  Tioga  county,  where  he  died,  in 
1838,  at  the  age  of  thirty-eight.  His  wife,  the  mother 
of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  a native  of  Connecti- 
cut, and  died,  in  1844,  at  the  age  of  sixty. 

Senator  Truman  held  various  unimportant  town 
ofiSces  previous  to  1840,  when  he  was  elected  Supervi- 
sor. He  was  again  elected  twice  to  the  same  position, 
and  in  1847  ran  as  a stump  candidate  for  the  Assem- 
6 


122 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


bly,  in  what  was  then  a strong  Democratic  district, 
lacking  only  a few  votes  of  an  election.  He  declined 
all  further  nominations  from  that  time  until  1851,  when 
the  Republicans  of  the  Twenty-fourth  district  brought 
him  forward  for  the  Senate,  and  he  was  triumphantly 
elected. 

During  the  last  and  preceding  session  of  the  Legis- 
lature, he  discharged  his  duties  faithfully  and  intelli- 
gently, as  Chairman  of  the  Standing  Committees  on 
Public  Expenditures  and  Claims,  and  was  renominated 
and  again  elected  at  the  last  election,  by  a large  ma- 
jority. In  early  life,  he  was  an  advocate  of  Democra- 
tic measures,  and  cast  his  first  vote  for  General  Jack- 
son.  He  became  a Whig  after  1833,  and  voted  with 
that  party  until  1848,  when  his  Freesoil  proclivities 
led  him  into  the  ranks  of  the  supporters  of  Mr.  Yan 
Buren,  for  whom  he  then  voted  for  President.  From 
this  time  he  took  no  further  part  in  politics,  being  too 
much  engrossed  with  his  own  private  affairs,  until  the 
repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise.  He  immediately 
then  became  a zealous  advocate  of  the  Republican 
movement,  and  has  ever  since  been  a warm  supporter 
of  the  doctrines  of  that  party,  taking  the  stump  on 
all  proper  occasions  in ‘their  behalf.  He  is,  also,  a 
strong  advocate  of  the  system  of  free  schools,  and 
never  fails  to  exert  all  his  power  and  influence  in  sup- 
port of  the  great  cause  of  temperance. 

Senator  Truman  was  married  on  the  10th  of  January, 
1838,  to  Miss  Emile  M.  Goodrich,  by  whom  he  has  three 
children,  and  his  family  attend  the  Congregational 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


123 


Church.  In  person,  he  is  a man  about  the  medium 
height ; is  muscular,  and  tolerably  well  formed  ; has 
blue  eyes,  a dark  complexion,  and  a profusion  of  dark- 
brown  hair,  with  a pleasant,  business-like  face,  whose 
features  are  very  strongly  marked.  He  is  mild,  cour- 
teous, and  unostentatious  in  hisi  manner  ; is  plainly, 
though  not  very  well  dressed  ; and  never  seems  to  be 
disengaged.  He  is  a fair,  though  not  very  graceful 
speaker,  and  a good  reasoner,  but  never  troubles  the 
Senate  with  speech-making,  regarding  good,  sound, 
safe  legislation  as  more  the  result  of  correct  thinking 
and  thorough  work  than  long-winded  speeches. 


ANDREW  S.  WARNER. 

Senator  Warner  is  a native  of  Vernon,  Oneida  county, 
ty,  N.  Y.,  where  he  was  born  on  the  12th  of  January, 
1819.  He  is  of  English  descent,  and  is  a brother  of 
the  Kev.  W.  W.  Warner,  who  is  now  preaching  at  Cham- 
pion, Jefferson  county,  N.  Y.  His  paternal  grand- 
father, Andrew  Warner,  who  was  a gallant  soldier  in 
the  American  Ee volution,  emigrated  to  New  York  from 
Connecticut,  and  settled  in  Oneida  county,  as  did,  also, 
his  maternal  grand-father,  Israel  Young,  who  came 
from  New  Hampshire.  His  father,  Andrew  Warner, 
who  was  an  industrious  and  enterprising  farmer,  died 
at  Sandy  Creek,  Oswego  county,  in  1843,  at  the  age  of 
fifty-two,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was 


124 


filOGRlPHiCAL  Sfi:£TCH£S. 


Elizabeth  C.  Young,  is  still  living,  at  the  advanced  ag^ 
of  sixty-five. 

Senator  Warner  received  an  academical  education. 
He  has  always  been  successfully  engaged  in  agricul- 
tural pursuits,  and  sustains  the  reputation  of  a busi-^ 
ness  man  of  superior  qualifications.  He  held  the  po^ 
sition  of  Superintendent  of  the  Poor,  in  1848,  and  was 
a member  of  the  Assembly  during  the  two  successive 
years  of  1855  and  ^56.  The  success  with  which  he  met 
in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  in  that  body,  was  alike 
creditable  to  himself  and  satisfactory  to  his  constitu-- 
ents  ; but  after  the  expiration  of  his  ofScial  term,  he 
declined  all  further  political  distinction,  until  the  fall  of 
1859,  when  he  consented  to  become  a candidate  for  the 
seat  he  now  holds  in  the  Senate,  and  was  victoriously 
elected.  His  entire  career,  thus  far,  through  life,  has 
been  simply  that  of  a quiet,  practical,  and  successful 
business  man,  and  his  official  conduct  in  the  Senate  is 
characterized  by  the  same  unpretending  qualities  for 
which  he  is  distinguished  in  private  life.  There  is 
nothing  brilliant  and  imposing  about  him,  his  efforts 
as  a debater  being  more  distinguished  for  their  plain, 
practical  common-sense,  than  flights  of  poetry  or  the 
flowers  of  rhetoric,  but  he  discharges  his  public  duties 
in  a manner  that  can  scarcely  fail  to  command  the* 
approbation  of  his  constituency. 

In  politics.  Senator  Warner  was  originally  a strong* 
Freesoiler,  persistently  opposing  every  thing  calcu- 
lated to  further  the  extension  of  the  institution  of  sla-- 
very,  and  was  a delegate  to  the  Buffalo  Convention  in 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


125 


1848,  which  put  forward  Mr.  Van  Buren  as  a candi- 
date for  the  Presidency.  From  that  time  forward,  he 
steadily  adhered  to  the  principles  of  the  Buffalo  plat- 
form, and  was  early  found  supporting*,  with  character- 
istic zeal  and  determination,  the  organization  and  the 
great  cardinal  doctrines  of  the  Republican  party.  He 
has  always  been  diligent  and  prompt  in  the  discharge 
of  all  his  party  obligations,  working  late  and  early  in 
behalf  of  the  Republican  cause,  and  has  succeeded  in 
acquiring  a strong  political  influence  in  the  county  of 
Oswego,  where  he  now  resides. 

Senator  Warner  was  married  on  the  19th  of  Octo- 
ber, 1842,  and  attends  the  Congregational  Church.  In 
person,  he  is  a large,  broad-shouldered,  substantially- 
built  man,  with  light  blue  eyes,  black  hair  and  beard, 
and  though  somewhat  diffident,  is  kind  and  sociable 
toward  all  with  whom  he  comes  in  contact,  in  the  ful- 
fillment of  his  private  and  public  duties. 


ALEXANDER  B.  WILLIAMS. 

Senator  Williams  was  born  on  the  29th  of  October, 
1815,  in  Alexandria,  D.  C.,  Ya.  His  father,  John 
Williams,  was  of  German  extraction,  but  was  native- 
born,  as  were  also  his  mother’s  family.  He  is  the 
second  of  six  sons,  three  of  whom,  besides  himself,  are 
still  living.  His  father  emigrated  to  New  York  in  the 
year  1825,  and  settled  in  the  town  of  Sodus,  Wayne 


126 


BIOGRAPHICAL , SKETCHES. 


county,  on  the  southern  borders  of  Lake  Ontario.  He 
was  a successful,  practical  mechanic,  and  assisted  in 
the  construction  of  the  first  packet-boat  ever  run  on 
the  Erie  canal.  He  died  at  that  place,  1843,  in  a fit 
of  apoplexy,  at  the  advanced  age  of  sixty-seven.  His 
wife,  the  mother  of  the  hero  of  this  sketch,  is  still 
living,  and  has  attained  the  age  of  seventy. 

.Senator  Williams  had  not  the  advantages  of  a 
classical  education,  having  received  all  the  schooling 
he  has  before  his  parents  removed  to  New  York,  when 
he  was  only  ten  years  of  age.  About  this  time  his 
father  placed  him  in  a dry-goods  store  in  Sodus,  as  a 
clerk,  and  his  employer,  having  no  children  of  his  own, 
adopted  him.  Here  he  remained  until  he  was  about 
eighteen  years  old,  when,  falling  out  one  day  with  his 
employer,  he  concluded  to  leave  him,  and  accordingly 
did  so,  by  hiring  himself  out  to  another  man,  engaged 
in  the  same  business,  at  nine  dollars  per  month.  He 
continued  in  this  new  position  till  1835,  when,  having 
become  one  of  the  most  popular,  efficient,  and  indus- 
trious clerks  in  that  section  of  the  country,  his  employer 
took  him  into  his  establishment  as  a partner,  without 
any  share  in  the  capital,  save  his  qualifications  as  a 
merchant.  This  partnership  continued  until  1831, 
when  the  firm  sold  out,  and  he  engaged  in  the  same 
business,  with  what  little  capital  he  had  by  that  time 
acquired,  on  his  own  responsibility.  He  then  continued 
in  the  mercantile  trade  till  1841,  when  he  again  sold 
out.  In  the  summer  of  the  same  year  he  was  appointed, 
under  President  Harrison,  to  the  post  of  Deputy  Col- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


127 


lector  and  Inspector  at  Big  Sodus  Bay,  which  he  held 
until  just  previous  to  the  advent  of  the  Administration 
of  Mr.  Polk,  when  he  resigned.  Then  again  he 
embarked  in  the  mercantile  business,  in  which  he 
continued  till  the  fall  of  1845,  when  he  finally  sold  out 
for  the  last  time.  In  this  same  year  he  was  elected 
County  Clerk,  and  was  subsequently  elected  to  the 
same  place,  holding  the  office,  in  all,  about  six  years. 
At  the  expiration  of  his  clerkship  he  found  his  health 
greatly  impaired  by  his  too  close  application  to  the 
duties  of  his  office,  and  from  that  time  until  his  elec- 
tion to  the  Senate,  he  devoted  most  of  his  time  to 
travelling  in  the  Western  States,  where  he  dealt  pretty 
extensively  in  the  buying  and  selling  of  land. 

Senator  Williams  has  had  considerable  experience 
as  a military  man,  having  arisen  from  a Lieutenancy  in 
a private  company,  to  the  position  of  Lieutenant-Colonel 
in  the  242d  Regiment,  and  has  proved  himself  eminently 
qualified  for  every  position  to  which  he  has  been  called. 
In  1841  he  was  elected  a Justice  of  the  Peace  in  the 
town  in  which  he  resided  by  a handsome  majority,  al- 
though the  town  was  strongly  Democratic  and  he  was 
the  Whig  candidate.  In  1845  he  was  again  elected  to 
the  same  office,  and  was  also  at  the  same  time  elected 
Supervisor,  by  large  majorities  in  both  instances.  In 
1855  he  was  the  unsuccessful  Republican  candidate 
for  State  Treasurer,  and  in  1857  was  nominated  for 
the  position  which  he  now  holds  in  the  Senate,  with 
great  unanimity,  by  the  Republicans  of  his  district, 
and  was  elected  by  a majority  of  over  three  thousand. 


128 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


against  a combination  of  Democrats  and  Americans. 
As  chairman  of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Eoads  and 
Bridges,  and  a member  of  the  committees  on  State 
Prisons  and  Public  Printing,  in  the  Senate,  during  the 
last  and  preceding  sessions,  he  discharged  his  duties 
faithfully,  although  confined  to  his  room  during  most 
of  the  time  by  ill  health.  He  has  not  unfrequently 
been  tendered  the  nomination  of  his  party  for  Congress, 
but  has  always  peremptorily  declined. 

Senator  Williams  early  espoused  the  anti-Masonic 
cause,  and  was  secretary  of  an  anti-Masonic  meeting 
at  the  age  of  twelve  years.  He  was  a member  of  the 
first  Whig  organization  in  Wayne  county,  in  1834, 
and  continued  to  act  with  the  Whig  party  until  it  lost 
its  organization  in  1854,  when  he  embarked  in  the 
Republican  cause.  He  was  a delegate  to  the  first 
Anti-Nebraska  State  Convention  at  Saratoga,  in  1854, 
and  was  at  Auburn  when  the  Republican  party  was 
christened  at  that  place.  He  has  always  been  an 
active,  decided  party  man,  and  is  perfectly  booked  up 
in  the  politics  of  the  State  and  the  Union.  He  is  a man 
of  strong  intellectual  powers  ; is  a clear  and  concise 
reasoner  ; and  in  legislation,  as  in  every  thing  else, 
combines  theory  with  practicability,  adopting  the 
former  only  so  far  as  it  conforms  to  the  latter. 

In  1832,  Senator  Williams  was  married  to  Miss 
Sarah  M.,  daughter  of  John  McCarty,  a successful 
farmer,  who  died  in  Wayne  county,  in  1831.  She  is  a 
modest,  unassuming,  sociable  woman,  and  every  way 
calculated  for  a good  wife,  a kind  mother,  and  a gene- 
rous and  hospitable  friend  and  neighbor. 


MEMBERS  OF  THE  SENATE, 


Number  of  their  respective  Districts^  and  the  Counties 
and  Wards  composing  the  same, 

Lieut. -Governor  Eobert  Campbell,  of  Bath,  President. 

Dist.  Counties  and  Wards.  Senators. 

1.  Suffolk,  Queens,  and  Eichmond  coun- 
ties   Edward  A.  Lawrence. 

2.  1st,  2d,  3d,  4th,  5th,  7th,  11th,  13th, 

and  19th  wards  of  Brooklyn  Thomas  A.  Gardiner. 

3.  6th,  8th,  9th,  10th,  12th,  14th,  15th, 

16th,  17th,  and  18th  wards  of  Brook- 
lyn   Francis  B.  Spinola. 

4.  1st,  2d,  3d,  4th,  5th,  6th,  7th,  8th, 

and  14th  wards  of  New  York J.  McLeod  Murphy. 

5.  10th,  11th,  13th,  and  17th  wards  of 

New  York Bernard  Kelly. 

6.  9th,  15th,  16th,  and  18th  wards  of 

New  York Benjamin  F.  Manierre. 

7.  12th,  19th,  20th,  21st,  and  22d 

wards  of  New  York Eichard  B.  Connolly. 

8.  Westchester,  Putnam,  and  Eockland 

counties Hezekiah  D.  Eobertson. 

9.  Orange  and  Sullivan Eobert  Y.  Grant. 

10.  Ulster  and  Greene Joshua  Fiero,  Jr. 

11.  Dutchess  and  Columbia John  H.  Ketcham. 

12.  Eensselaer  and  Washington Volney  Eichmond. 

13.  Albany Andrew  J.  Colvin. 

14.  Delaware,  Schoharie,  and  Schenec- 
tady  Joseph  H.  Eamsey. 


6* 


130  MEMBERS  OF  THE  SENATE. 

15.  Montgomery,  Fulton,  Saratoga,  and 

Hamilton Isaiah  Blood. 

16.  Warren,  Essex,  and  Franklin Nathan  Lapham. 

17.  St.  Lawrence  and  Franklin Charles  C.  Montgomery. 

18.  Jefferson  and  Lewis  James  A.  Bell. 

19.  Oneida Wm.  H.  Ferry. 

20.  Herkimer  and  Otsego Francis  M.  Botch. 

21.  Oswego Andrew  S.  Warner. 

22.  Onondaga Allen  Munroe. 

23.  Madison,  Chenango,  and  Cortland . . Perrin  H.  McGraw. 

24.  Tompkins,  Tioga,  and  Broome Lyman  Truman. 

25.  Wayne  and  Cayuga Alexander  B.  Williams. 

26.  Ontario,  Yates,  and  Seneca Thomas  Hillhouse. 

27.  Chemung,  Schuyler,  and  Steuben  . . Samuel  H.  Hammond. 

28.  Monroe  Ephraim  Goss. 

29.  Niagara,  Orleans,  and  Genesee Peter  P.  Murphy. 

30.  Wyoming,  Livingston,  and  Alle- 
gany   David  H.  Abell. 

31.  Erie Erastus  S.  Prosser. 

32.  Chautauqua  and  Cattaraugus Walter  L.  Sessions. 


MEMBERS  OF  THE  SENATE. 


131 


ALPHABETICAL  LIST  OF  SENATORS. 

The  Counties  in  which  they  reside,  their  Post  Office 
Address,  and  Politics. 


Senators. 

Counties. 

P.  0.  Address. 

Politics. 

Edward  A.  Lawrence 

. Queens 

. Flushing 

Thomas  A.  Gardiner. . . . 

. Kings 

. Brooklyn 

. Dem. 

Francis  B.  Spinola 

. Kings 

. Brooklyn 

J.  McLeod  Murphy 

. New  York. . . 

. New  York. . . . 

Bernard  Kelly 

. New  York. . . 

. New  York 

Benjamin  F.  Manierre. . . 

. New  York. . . 

. New  York. . . . 

Eichard  B.  Connolly . , . . 

. New  York. . . 

. New  York 

Hezekiah  D.  Eobertson. . 

. Westchester  . . 

. Bedford 

Eobert  Y.  Grant 

. Sullivan 

. Liberty 

Joshua  Fiero,  Jr 

. Greene 

. Catskill 

John  H.  Ketcham 

. Dutchess 

. Dover  Plains . . 

. Eep. 

Yolney  Eichmond 

. Eensselaer .... 

. Hoosick  Falls. . 

. Eep. 

Andrew  J.  Colvin 

. Albany 

. Albany 

Joseph  H.  Eamsey 

. Schoharie  .... 

. Lawyersville. . . 

. Eep. 

Isaiah  Blood 

. Saratoga 

. Ballston  Spa . . . 

. Dem. 

Nathan  Lapham 

. Clinton 

. Peru 

Charles  C.  Montgomery. . 

. St.  Lawrence, . 

. Wadding  ton. . . 

. Eep. 

James  A.  Bell 

. Jefferson 

. Dexter 

. Eep. 

Wm.  H.  Ferry 

. Oneida 

. Utica,  

. Eep. 

Francis  M.  Eotch 

. Otsego 

. Morris 

. Eep. 

Andrew  S.  Warner. 

. Oswego 

. Sandy  Creek. . . 

. Eep. 

Allen  Munroe 

. Onondaga  , . . . 

. Syracuse 

. Eep. 

Perrin  H.  McGraw 

. Cortland 

. McGrawville. . . 

. Eep. 

Lyman  Truman 

. Tioga 

. Owego 

. Eep. 

Alexander  B.  Williams . . 

. Wayne 

. Lyons 

. Eep. 

Thomas  Hillhouse 

. Ontario 

. Geneva 

Samuel  H.  Hammond . . . 

. Steuben 

. Bath 

. Eep. 

Ephraim  Goss 

. Monroe 

. Pittsford 

. Eep. 

Peter  P.  Murphy 

. Niagara 

. Eoyalton 

. Eep. 

David  H.  Abell 

. Livingston 

. Mt.  Morris 

. Eep. 

Erastus  S.  Prosser 

. Erie 

. Buffalo 

. Eep. 

Walter  L.  Sessions 

. Chautauqua  . . 

. Panama. 

. Eep. 

132 


MEMBERS  OF  THE  SENATE- 


SENATE  STANDING  COMMITTEES, 

Claims — Truman,  McGraw,  Lawrence. 

Finance — Sessions,  Truman,  Grant. 

Judiciary — Hammond,  Kamsey,  Colvin, 

Canals — Prosser,  Bell,  Connolly. 

Railroads — Abell,  P.  P.  Murphy,  Eichmond. 

Charitable  and  Religious  Societies — HcGraw,  Warner,  Grant, 
Literature — Hillhouse,  McGraw,  J.  M.  Murphy. 

Militia — Fiero,  Williams,  Blood. 

Roads  and  Bridges — Lapham,  Goss,  Kelly. 

Grievances — Hillhouse,  Fiero,  Blood. 

Banks — Williams,  Ferry,  Spinola. 

Insurance  Companies — Ketcham,  Ferry,  Spinola. 

Privileges  and  Elections — Fiero,  Monroe,  Connolly. 

Internal  Affairs  of  Towns  and  Counties — Goss,  Fiero,  Spinola. 

State  Prisons — Munroe,  Montgomery,  Colvin. 

Poor  Laws — Lapham,  Goss,  Kelly. 

Engrossed  Bills — Warner,  Connolly,  Williams. 

Indian  Affairs — Montgomery,  Botch,  Kelly. 

Commence  and  Navigation — Eobertson,  Prosser,  J.  M.  Murphy. 
Agriculture — Botch,  Abell,  Gardiner. 

Manufojctures — Bell,  Eobertson,  Blood. 

Retrenchment — Ketcham,  Williams,  Kelly. 

Public  Buildings — Warner,  Botch,  Connolly. 

Erection  and  Division  of  I'owns  and  Counties — Ea.msey,  Montgomery, 
Grant. 

Cities  and  Villages — Manierre,  Eichmond,  Lawrence. 

Public  Expenditures — Ferry,  Manierre,  Gardiner. 

Expiring  Laws — Lawrence,  Sessions,  Goss. 

Medical  Societies — P.  P.  Murphy,  Warner,  Colvin. 

Public  Printing — Eichmond,  Montgomery,  Spinola. 

Manufacture  of  Salt — Abell,  Hammond,  Blood. 

Joint  Library — J.  M.  Murphy,  Munroe,  Abell. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


133 


MEMBERS  OF  ASSEMBLY. 


DEWITT  C.  UTTLEJOHN, 

SPEAKER. 

This  gentleman  has  become  almost  a permanent 
fixture  in  the  Speaker's  chair  of  the  lower  branch  of 
the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  New  York.  This  is 
the  fourth  time  he  has  occupied  that  distinguished 
position,  having  previously  filled  it  during  the  years 
1855,  ^57,  and  ^59,  and  it  is  but  just  to  accord  him  the 
praise  of  having  thus  far  discharged  his  duties  with 
signal  ability  and  success.  He  is  remarkably  ready 
and  decided  as  a presiding  officer,  and  possesses  a 
calm  dignity,  which  no  confusion  or  excitement  can 
disturb ; but  in  speaking,  his  whole  manner  is 
changed.  He  becomes  nervous,  impassioned,  and  not 
unfrequently  vehement,  and  even  the  most  feeble 
thought  goes  from  his  lips  with  the  most  forcible 
enunciation,  and  energetic  delivery. 

Mr.  Littlejohn  was  born  in  1818,  in  Oneida  county, 
^ N.  Y.,  and  while  yet  young,  removed  with  his  parents 
to  Albany,  where  his  mother,  a good-natured,  clever, 
sprightly  old  lady,  of  some  sixty  years,  still  resides. 
Having  received  a complete  academical  education  in 
that  city,  he  removed  to  Oswego  in  1839,  where  he 


134 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


became  a clerk  in  the  commission  and  forwarding 
business,  in  which  he  became  a partner  with  his 
employer  in  1842,  and  in  which  he  is  still  engaged. 
His  first  prominent  appearance  in  public  life,  was  in 
1853,  when  he  was  an  active  and  influential  member 
of  the  lower  branch  of  the  Legislature,  and  during 
the  years  1854,  ’55,  ’5f,  and  ’59,  he  successfully 
occupied  the  same  position  in  that  body.  As  a 
member  of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Canals, 
he  distinguished  himself,  during  the  session  of  1853, 
by  his  efforts  to  procure  the  amendment  to  the 
Constitution  for  the  speedy  enlargement  of  the  canals, 
and  took  a very  active  part,  in  the  winter  of  *1854, 
in  the  enactment  of  a law  changing  the  mode  of 
awarding  contracts  on  the  public  works.  He  was  the 
candidate  for  Speaker,  at  the  opening  of  that  session, 
of  the  old  line,  national  conservative  branch  of  the 
Whig  party,  but  was  defeated,  in  the  caucus,  by  the 
Hon.  Robert  H.  Pruyn,  of  Albany,  who  represented 
the  Freesoil  portion  of  the  party,  and  who  was  the 
successful  candidate  for  that  position.  In  1855  he 
was  chosen  Speaker  of  the  House,  as  the  American 
candidate,  and  during  that  session,  signalized  himself 
by  the  prominent  part  which  he  enacted  in  the  move- 
ment that  resulted  in  the  re-election  of  Mr.  Seward  to  ^ 
the  Senate  of  the  United  States.  Although  his  course 
on  that  occasion  was  bitterly  repudiated  and  de- 
nounced by  many,  in  consequence  of  his  having  been 
among  the  first  to  enlist  in  the  American  movement, 
yet  he  was  triumphantly  elected  Mayor  of  the  city  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


135 


Oswego,  in  the  spring  of  that  year,  which  his  friends 
claimed  to  have  been  an  indorsement,  by  his  con- 
stituents, of  the  prominent  part  he  took  in  Mr.  Seward’s 
success.  In  the  fall  of  1856  he  was  re-elected  to  the 
Assembly,  as  the  Republican  candidate  of  his 
district,  and  was  again  Speaker  of  that  body,  during 
the  session  of  185 1,  and  also,  during  the  session  of 
1859,  when  he  had  been  again  re-elected,  by  a 
majority  of  over  three  hundred  and  fifty. 

Mr.  Littlejohn’s  early  political  tendencies  led  him 
into  the  Whig  ranks,  where  he  remained,  a great 
admirer  of  Henry  Clay,  till  the  disorganization  of 
that  party,  when  he  became  an  American,  subsequent- 
ly a Republican,  and  since  Mr.  Seward’s  return  to  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States,  has  been  one  of  the 
most  prominent  and  zealous  members  of  that  organ- 
ization. As  a politician  he  is  somewhat  cautious  in 
reaching  conclusions,  but  when  once  determined  upon 
a course,  is  bold,  positive,  and  straight-forward  in 
action.  He  can  scarcely  be  called  a representative 
man,  lacking  suflScient  originality  for  that ; but, 
doubtless,  possesses,  in  a great  degree,  what  is  far 
better — that  discipline  of  mind  and  judgment,  which, 
at  once,  enables  him  to  recognize  reason  and  truth, 
and  detect  fraud  or  fallacy.  His  greatest  fault  is  an 
over-stock  of  ambition,  aspiring  high  in  the  scale  of 
political  distinction,  and  to  this  feature  in  his 
character,  may,  perhaps,  be  safely  ascribed  most  of 
the  apparent  inconsistencies  and  acts  of  treachery  by 
which  his  political  career  is  prominently  marked. 


136 


BlOGRAffllCAL  SKETCHES. 


Mr.  Littlejohn  is  married,  and  attends  the  Episcopal 
Church.  He  is  personally,  as  well  as  politically,  a 
somewhat  popular  representative,  and  has  a genial 
suavity  of  manner,  which  seldom  or  never  varies. 


BENJAMIN  ALLEN. 

Mr.  Allen  was  born  on  the  29th  of  November,  1811, 
on  the  farm  on  which  he  is  now  living,  in  the  town  of 
Augusta,  Oneida  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  descended  from 
genuine,  unadulterated  Yankee  stock.  His  grand-father, 
Benjamin  Allen,  lived  in  Vermont,  and  was  drowned 
in  the  Connecticut  river  while  attempting  to  rescue  a 
person  who  had  fallen  through  the  ice.  His  father, 
whose  name  was,  also,  Benjamin,  came  from  Weathers- 
I field,  in  that  State,  and  in  1796  settled  in  Augusta, 
Oneida  county,  which  was  then  an  unbroken  wilder- 
ness, inhabited  only  by  Indians  and  wild  beasts.  His 
father  died  in  that  place  on  the  21st  of  April,  1838,  at 
the  age  of  sixty-four,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Eunice  Sessions,  who  was  from  Windham, 
Ct.,  died  on  the  16th  of  May,  in  the  same  year. 

With  the  exception  of  spending  a few  terms  at  the 
Hamilton  Academy,  in  Madison  county,  N.  Y.,  Mr. 
Allen  was  educated  in  the  common  district  schools  of 
the  town  where  he  now  resides.  He  was  brought  up 
a farmer,  and  has  always  been  successfully  engaged  in 
that  occupation.  He  has  held  various  unimportant  town 
offices,  including  Superintendent  of  Common  Schools, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


13t 


which  he  filled  in  1843  and  ^44,  and  was  Supervisor 
of  the  town  of  Augusta  during  the  years  1839  and 
^46.  He  was  formerly  a Democrat  of  strong  Freesoil 
proclivities,  and  became  a member  of  the  Kepublican 
party  at  the  inauguration  of  that  movement.  He  is  a 
man  of  more  than  ordinary  personal  and  political 
popularity,  throughout  the  community  in  which  he 
resides,  and  was  elected  to  his  present  position  by  a 
handsome  majority. 

Mr.  Allen  was  married  on  the  llth  of  November, 
1836,  to  Miss  Mary  Durkee,  and  attends  the  Congre- 
gational Church.  There  are  but  few  men  in  the 
Assembly  who  bring  with  them  to  the  discharge  of 
their  official  duties  a greater  degree  of  real,  genuine, 
practical  worth  than  Mr.  Allen. 


ORLANDO  ALLEN. 

Mr.  Allen  was  born  in  the  village  of  New  Hartford, 
Oneida  county,  N.  Y.,  on  the  10th  of  February,  1803, 
He  is  of  English  and  Scotch-Irish  descent,  and  is  a 
remote  connection  of  Ethan  Allen,  of  Revolutionary 
fame,  and  Kirkham,  the  well-known  grammarian. 
His  paternal  grand-father  emigrated  from  the  eastern 
part  of  Vermont  to  New  Hartford,  about  the  year 
1190,  and  died  in  that  place  shortly  afterwards.  His 
father  and  mother,  Eri  Allen  and  Sarah  Lee,  the 
former  of  whom  died  in  1826,  and  the  latter  in  1845, 
were  married  in  1191,  and  after  living  several  years 


138 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


in  New  Hartford  and  Sangerfield,  removed  west- 
ward, and  finally  settled  in  Fredonia,  Chautauqua 
county,  N.  Y.  His  mother’s  family  came  from  Con- 
necticut to  Sangerfield,  Oneida  county,  about  the 
year  1791. 

Mr.  Allen  received  a good,  practical  business  edu- 
cation, and  at  the  age  of  twenty-one  had  nearly  com- 
pleted a four-years’  course  of  medical  training,  under 
the  tuition  of  the  late  Dr.  Chapin,  of  Buffalo.  Becoming 
disgusted,  however,  with  the  practice  of  the  medical 
profession,  in  a comparatively  new  country,  he  aban- 
doned it,  and  engaged  in  the  mercantile  trade,  then  in 
banking,  then  in  real  estate  speculation,  and  finally 
has  been  president  of  a railroad  company  for  the  last 
seven  years,  engaged  in  constructing  a road  from 
Buffalo  to  the  coal-fields  of  McKean  county.  Pa.  Mean- 
while he  has,  also,  during  the  past  twenty  years,  been 
superintending  a farm  which  he  owns  near  that  city. 
In  1835, ’46,  and  ’47,  he  was  a member  of  the  Com- 
mon Council  of  Buffalo,  and  during  a part  of  the 
latter  year  served  as  Mayor  pro  tern.,  having  been  ap- 
pointed to  that  position  by  the  Common  Council.  In 
1 848  he  was  elected  Mayor,  and  was  subsequently  a 
member  of  the  convention  which  revised  the  city 
charter.  He  has  been  Supervisor  some  eight  or  ten 
years,  and  has  previously  represented  his  district  in 
the  Legislature  during  the  years  1850  and  ’51.  He  was 
a member  of  the  Committee  on  Canals  during  both 
sessions,  and  in  1851,  was  Chairman,  and  brought 
forward  the  bill  providing  for  the  completion  of  the 


BIOGKAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


139 


enlargement  of  the  Erie  Canal,  which  became  a law 
during  the  extra  session  of  that  year. 

Mr.  Allen  was  formerly  a conservative  Whig,  but  is 
now  an  American,  and  was  elected  to  his  present  posi- 
tion by  a union  of  that  and  the  Republican  party. 
His  first  vote  was  cast  for  De  Witt  Clinton  for  Gover- 
nor, and  he  has  supported  John  Quincy  Adams,  Henry 
Clay,  General  Harrison,  General  Taylor,  and  Millard 
Fillmore,  for  the  Presidency.  Although  having  held 
many  prominent  public  positions,  he  has  never  been 
an  office-seeker,  and  has  been  more  of  a business  man 
than  a politician. 

He  was  married  in  the  fall  of  1826,  to  Miss  Marilla 
A.  Pratt,  a native  of  Buffalo,  and  a lady  of  rare  excel- 
lence, *who,  with  himself,  is  a member  of  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church. 


HENRY  AROULARIUS. 

This  gentleman  belongs  to  that  class  of  energetic, 
practical,  incorruptible,  progressive,  self-made  men,  of 
whom  Brother  Jonathan  so  loudly  boasts,  and  whose 
history  should  be  carefully  studied  by  every  American 
boy  in  the  country,  whether  born  abroad  or  on  the  soil. 
It  is,  indeed,  rarely  the  case,  that  we  find  any  one 
whose  life  illustrates  in  a higher  or  more  striking 
degree,  what  may  be  accomplished  under  our  system 
of  government,  by  industry,  perseverance,  and  self- 
reliance,  than  that  of  Mr,  Arcularius.  Born  of  poor, 


140 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


though  honest  and  respectable  parents,  he  had  but  lit- 
tle encouragement  on  entering  upon  lifers  active  career, 
yet  with  a heart  buoyant  with  hope,  and  an  honest, 
enthusiastic  desire  to  succeed,  he  fearlessly  and  reso- 
lutely launched  forth  his  little  bark  upon  the  troubled 
waters  of  active  life,  and  by  his  firmness  and  integrity 
of  character,  and  his  energy  and  stability  of  purpose, 
has  succeeded,  thus  far,  in  successfully  riding,  in  tri- 
umph, the  storm  of  human  strife  and  activity. 

Mr.  Arcularius  was  born  on  the  8th  of  February, 
1814,  in  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he  has  al- 
ways resided.  He  is  of  German  extraction,  and  his 
paternal  grand-father,  George  Arcularius,  came  to 
America  in  1784,  shortly  after  the  treaty  of  peace 
between  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States.  His 
father,  Henry  Arcularius,  who  died  about  three  years 
ago,  at  the  age  of  sixty-seven,  held  the  office  of  Com- 
missary-General during  two  terms,  and  was  a man 
of  high  standing  and  influence  during  his  life-time,  and 
an  accomplished  military  officer.  His  mother,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Charlotte  Storms,  and  who  died 
when  comparatively  young,  was  a sister  of  Henry 
Storms,  formerly  Commissary-General,  and  a lady  of 
superior  qualities  and  rare  female  excellence. 

Mr.  Arcularius  never  attended  school  after  attaining 
the  tenth  year  of  his  age,  when  he  engaged  in  the 
baking  business  with  his  father,  in  whose  establish- 
ment he  became  foreman  when  only  seventeen  years 
of  age,  and  continued  to  follow  that  business  until 
1840,  In  1848  he  was  nominated  by  acclamation  at 


fetOGRAPHiCAL  SKfi'TCHfig. 


Ui 


Tammany  Hall,  as  a candidate  for  Register,  but  owing 
to  the  division  then  existing  in  the  Democratic  party, 
the  Freesoilers  running  a candidate  against  him,  he 
was  defeated,  although  running  nearly  four  hundred 
votes  in  advance  of  Gen.  Cass,  the  regular  nominee  of 
the  Democracy  for  the  Presidency.  In  1849,  after  the 
Democratic  Convention  in  the  city  of  New  York  had 
Unsuccessfully  balloted  five  successive  nights  for  a 
candidate  for  Sheriff,  he  was  nominated  unanimously 
as  a candidate  for  County  Clerk,  but  was  again  de- 
feated in  consequence  of  the  same  distracting  causes 
still  existing  in  the  Democratic  ranks.  In  1859 
he  was  nominated  on  the  first  ballot  as  a candidate 
for  Congress,  in  the  Fifth  District,  then  comprising  the 
Eighth,  Ninth,  and  Fourteenth  Wards,  and  was  de- 
feated by  a Very  small  majority,  by  the  Hon.  George 
Briggs,  now  in  Congress. 

In  1851  he  Was  triumphantly  elected  Commissioner  of 
Streets  and  Lamps,  in  the  city  of  New  York,  for  a term 
of  three  years,  but  becoming  dissatisfied  with  the  posi- 
tion, resigned  at  the  expiration  of  two  years.  He  then 
wholly  retired  from  public  life  Until  185'T,  when  he  be- 
came a member  of  the  Common  Council,  where  he  held 
the  position  of  Chairman  of  the  Finance  Committee,  and 
Was  one  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  Sinking  Fund. 
He  was  brought  forward,  at  the  last  election,  with 
entire  unanimity  as  a candidate  of  the  Mozart  Hall 
Democracy  for  the  seat  he  now  occupies,  and  was  tri- 
umphantly elected  over  both  the  Tammany  Hall  and 
Republican  cadidates.  He  has  always  been  a staunch, 


142 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES* 


fearless,  uncompromising,  and  consistent  Democrat, 
of  the  genuine  National  conservative  stamp,  and  is 
the  only  Hard-shell  Democrat  in  the  House  elected  ex- 
clusively by  that  branch  of  the  Democracy.  He  is 
one  of  the  most  valuable  men  in  either  branch  of  the 
Legislature,  being  seldom  absent  from  his  post  in  the 
discharge  of  any  duty  devolving  upon  him,  and  enjoys 
a high  degree  of  personal  and  political  popularity. 
He  possesses  a large  share  of  sound,  practical  com- 
mon sense,  and  although  always  cool,  calm,  civil,  and 
friendly  to  all,  is  obstinately  firm  in  the  right.  He  is 
a good  speaker,  using  the  purest  and  strongest  Anglo- 
Saxon,  and  always  advances  in  a straight  geometrical 
line  right  to  the  real  point  in  controversy,  with  a 
directness  that  there  is  no  mistaking* 

Mr.  Arcularius  was  married,  in  1845,  to  Miss  Emily, 
youngest  daughter  of  John  M.  Lester,  who  died  on  the 
6th  of  October,  1856.  He  has  no  fixed  religious  views  ; 
but  is  liberal  in  all  such  matters,  carrying  out,  as  his 
motto,  to  the  fullest  possible  extent,  in  his  every-day 
action,  the  beautiful  expression  of  the  Holy  Book, 
Do  to  others  as  you  wish  to  be  done  byP 


GEORGE  R.  BARDEK 

Mr.  Barden  was  born  on  the  11th  of  August,  1812, 
in  Benton,  Yates  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  has  al- 
ways resided.  He  is  of  Welsh  descent.  His  father, 
George  Barden,  who  is  still  living  at  the  age  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES* 


143 


seventy-two,  came  from  Massachusetts,  and  his  mother, 
who  is  also  still  living,  at  the  age  of  seventy,  is  a 
native  of  Pennsylvania. 

Mr.  Barden  received  a common  English  education, 
and  has  always  been  an  active,  industrious,  and  suc- 
cessful farmer.  He  never  held  any  conspicuous  public 
position  until  his  election  to  the  present  Legislature, 
but  discharges  his  duties  in  a manner  that  can  scarcely 
fail  to  secure  the  unqualified  approbation  of  the  con- 
stituency he  represents.  He  is  clear-headed — a man 
of  sound,  discriminating  judgment,  and  votes  and  acts 
under  standingly  on  all  questions  coming  before  him. 
His  reputation  at  home  stands  high,  and  he  was  chosen 
to  his  present  position  by  a majority  of  over  six 
hundred. 

Mr.  Barden  was  married  on  the  6th  of  April,  IBS'!, 
to  Miss  Elmira,  daughter  of  the  late  Col.  J ames  Suth- 
erland, and  has  four  children— one  son  and  three  in- 
teresting daughters.  He  is  a member  of  the  Baptist 
Church,  and  occupies  a creditable  position  in  all  the 
private  and  domestic  relations  of  life. 


JAMES  BARNETT. 

Mr.  Barnett  was  born  on  the  18th  of  May,  1810,  in 
the  town  of  Topsham,  Orange  county,  Vermont.  His 
father,  James  Barnett,  and  his  mother,  Sarah  Wason, 
were  natives  of  Londonderry,  New  Hampshire,  and 
descendants  of  the  families  who  emigrated  to  that 


144 


StOGtlAPIllCAL  SKETCHES, 


town  from  the  north  of  Ireland,  in  1119,  and  who  first 
introduced  into  this  country  the  foot  spinning-wheel, 
the  manufacture  of  linen,  and  the  culture  of  many  val- 
uable agricultural  products. 

His  father,  with  a family  of  six  children,  removed 
from  Vermont  in  1811,  and  two  years  later  settled  in 
the  town  of  Georgetown,  Madison  county,  N.Y.,  which 
was  then  almost  a wilderness.  Both  his  parents  are 
now  dead,  his  father  having  died  in  1841,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-six,  and  his  mother  in  August,  1848. 

Mr.  Barnettes  educational  advantages  were  only  such' 
as  the  common  schools  of  the  new  country  in  which 
he  passed  his  boyhood,  could  afford  him  during  the 
winter  months,  while  laboring  faithfully  on  his  father^s 
farm  during  the  summer.  At  the  age  of  eighteen,  he 
commenced  teaching  school  during  the  winter  months, 
still  assisting  his  father  during  the  summer,  and 
remained  so  engaged  until  the  age  of  twenty-one, 
when  he  became  a clerk  in  the  mercantile  trade,  which 
business  he  has  always  since  successfully  followed. 
In  1836,  just  before  the  memorable  bank  suspension 
and  consequent  financial  crisis,  he  became  a merchant, 
on  his  own  responsibility,  at  Fayetteville,  Onondaga 
County,  N.  Y.  Here  he  remained  till  the  spring  of 
1838,  when  he  removed  to  Peterboro^,  Madison  county, 
where  he  has  always  since  been  successfully  engaged 
in  the  mercantile  trade.  In  politics,  he  is  a firm 
believer  in  the  Kepublican  faith,  with  very  strong 
anti-slavery  sentiments.  He  cast  his  first  vote  for 
Andrew  Jackson,  for  President,  and  until  the  recent 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


145 


organization  of  the  Eepublican  party,  was  identified 
with  the  Freesoil  or  Liberty  movement.  He  is  a man  of 
influence  and  high  respectability  in  the  community  in 
which  he  resides,  and  comes  to  the  Assembly  by  a 
majority  of  upwards  of  six  hundred. 

Mr.  Barnett  was  married  in  1836,  to  Miss  Julia  A. 
Eich,  of  Peterboro’,  N/Y.,  wh"o  died  in  1848,  and  was 
again  married  in  1849,  to  Miss  Ellen,  daughter  of  the 
late  Eev.  Nathaniel  Eing,  of  Hamilton,  Madison 
county,  N.  Y. 


SAMUEL  S.  BEEBE. 

Mr.  Beebe  was  born  on  the  19th  of  October,  1820,  in 
Lincklaen,  Chenango  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  of  Welsh 
descent.  His  father,  Cary  S.  Beebe,  is  still  living,  as 
is  also  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Martha 
Lewis,  and  both  have  attained  the  advanced  age  of 
seventy-four. 

Mr.  Beebe  was  educated  in  the  common  schools  of 
his  native  town,  and  has  always  been  engaged  in 
farming.  He  was  elected  Supervisor  of  the  town  in 
which  he  resides,  in  1858,  and  was  re-elected  in  1859, 
besides  having  held  some  minor  town  offices.  He  was 
formerly  a member  of  what  has  been  known  in  the 
politics  of  the  country  as  the  Liberty  party,  but  since 
the  inauguration  of  the  Eepublican  movement,  has 
been  an  ardent  supporter  of  the  distinctive  principles 
and  policy  of  that  party.  He  is  a young  man  of  con- 
1 


146 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


siderable  practical  ability,  and  is  attentive  and  indns- 
trions, though  by  no  means  boisterous,  in  the  discharge 
of  his  duties  as  a member  of  the  House.  He  main- 
tains a high  social  and  political  position  in  the  com- 
munity of  which  he  is  a resident,  and  wields  much 
more  than  ordinary  influence  in  all  matters  of  a pri- 
vate or  public  character. 

Mr.  Beebe  was  married  in  1856  to  Miss  Achsah  L, 
Halbert,  and  belongs  to  the  Congregational  Church. 


ANSON  BINGHAM, 

Mr.  Bingham  is  a native  of  the  good  old  State  of 
Connecticut,  and  is  about  forty-five  years  of  age.  He 
removed  from  his  native  place  to  New  York,  when 
comparatively  young,  and  settled  in  the  village  of 
Nassau,  Kensselaer  county,  where  he  studied  law  and 
practised  his  profession  until  about  two  years  since. 
He  then  came  to  the  city  of  Albany,  although  still 
claiming  Nassau  as  his  place  of  residence,  and  formed 
a copartnership  in  the  law  with  the  Hon.  Andrew  J. 
Colvin,  and  Hugh  W.  McClellan,  his  brother-in-law 
He  has  been  Supervisor  of  the  town  of  Nassau,  and 
District  Attorney  of  Rensselaer  county,  and  was  a 
member  of  the  Assembly  of  1859,  where  he  pursued  a 
quiet,  though  active  course  throughout  the  session, 
both  on  the  floor  of  the  House  and  as  a member  of  the 
Standing  Committee  on  the  Judiciary.  He  was  re- 
elected at  the  last  election  by  a majority  of  over  six 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


14t 


hundred,  which  was  an  increase  on  his  majority  of 
the  previous  year. 

Mr.  Bingham  was  formerly  a Whig,  and  became  a 
Kepublican  at  the  first  organization  of  that  party. 
He  has  never  paid  much  attention  to  politics,  and  has 
devoted  himself  chiefly  to  his  profession,  in  which  he 
has  acquired  some  notoriety  by  his  efforts  in  behalf  of 
the  cause  of  the  anti-renters  in  Eensselaer  county. 
He  is  a man  of  sorhe  ability,  but  is  not  very  well  cal- 
culated for  a representative  position,  and  during  the  pre- 
sent session,  will  scarcely  be  able  to  relieve  the  dis- 
appointment which  his  constituents  generally  felt  at 
the  end  of  his  term  of  service  in  the  last  Legislature. 

Mr.  Bingham  was  married  some  years  ago  to  a 
daughter  of  the  late  Dr.  Samuel  McClellan,  of  Nassau, 
and  attends  the  Presbyterian  Church,  of  which  his 
wife  is  a member.  He  is  a brother-in-law  of  Robert 
McClellan,  late  Surrogate  of  Eensselaer  county,  and 
of  Judge  John  T.  Hogeboom,  of  Columbia  county,  who 
was  a member  of  the  Assembly  in  185L 


ABEL  T.  BIXBY. 


Mr.  Bixby  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Campbell, 
Steuben  county,  N.  Y.,  and  was  born  on  the  24th  of 
August,  1828.  He  is  of  English  descent,  and  a lineal 
descendant  of  Gov.  William  Bradford,  of  the  Colony  i 
Massachusetts.  His  father,  Solomon  Bixby,  died 
that  town  on  the  7th  of  May,  1843,  at  the  age  of  fori 


148 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


five,  and  his  mother,  Lucy  French  Bixby,  died  at  the 
same  place  in  November,  1832,  at  the  age  of  thirty-six. 

Mr.  Bixby  received  a common  English  education, 
and  is  now  engaged  in  the  mercantile  trade  and  the 
manufacture  of  pig  iron.  He  was  Supervisor  of  the 
town  where  he  resides  during  the  years  1855  and 
^57,  but  has  never  held  any  very  prominent  public 
position  until  his  election  to  the  present  Legislature. 
He  was  formerly  a Whig,  and  is  now  an  active  and 
enthusiastic  member  of  the  Eepublican  party.  He  is 
a man  of  considerable  ability,  and  although  quiet  and 
unpretending,  fulfills  the  duties  of  his  position  in  the 
House  with  conscientiousness,  and  strict  fidelity  to 
the  best  interests  of  his  constituents. 

Mr.  Bixby  was  married  in  1853  to  Miss  Helen  M. 
Gates,  and  chiefly  attends  the  Methodist  Church.  He 
stands  high,  wherever  he  is  known,  throughout  all  the 
social  relations  of  private  life,  and  enjoys  a high 
degree  of  personal  as  well  as  political  popularity, 
everywhere  throughout  the  town  and  county  in  which 
he  lives.  His  social  position  in  the  Assembly  is  equally 
high,  and  he  is  held  in  the  highest  regard  by  all  his 
legislative  associates  at  the  State  Capitol. 


JAY  D.  BOWMAK 


Mr.  Bowman  is  the  only  American  member  of  the 
egislature  who  did  not  participate  in  the  Republican 
ucus,  at  the  opening  of  the  present  session,  and  who 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


149 


did  not  support  the  election  of  the  present  officers  of 
the  House.  He  was  formerly  a strong*,  uncompromis- 
^ ing  Whig,  of  the  conservative  Henry  Clay  school,  and 
since  the  dissolution  of  that  party,  has  been  a firm  and 
consistent  supporter  of  the  principles  and  policy  of 
the  American  party.  He  has  always  been  a vigilant 
and  efficient  member  of  that  party,  voting  steadily  for 
its  regular  nominees,  at  every  election,  and  last  fall 
labored  steadily  and  perseveringly  for  the  success  of 
the  Utica  ticket,^^  which,  with  a single  exception, 
was  triumphantly  elected,  to  the  very  great  damage 
of  the  party  machines.^^ 

Mr.  Bowman  was  born  on  the  26th  of  June,  1827. 
He  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Charleston,  Montgomery 
county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  of  pure  Yankee  descent.  His 
father,  Asa  Bowman,  who  was  a member  of  the 
Assembly  in  1848,  died  about  six  years  since,  in  the 
fifty-ninth  year  of  his  age,  and  his  mother,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Ruth  Rider,  is  still  living,  at  an 
advanced  age.  He  was  educated  at  the  Schoharie 
Academy,  in  the  village  of  Schoharie,  and  remained  on 
his  father^s  farm  until  1848,  since  which  time  he  has 
been  engaged  in  the  mercantile  business,  in  the  vil- 
lage of  Burtonville,  in  his  native  town.  He  has  been 
post-master  some  four  years,  and  a Justice  of  the 
Peace  since  the  age  of  twenty-one,  and  during  the 
years  1855,  ^56,  ^57,  and  ’58,  was  a member  of  the 
Board  of  Supervisors.  His  business  qualifications  are 
of  a superior  order,  and  he  brings  with  him  to  the  dis- 
charge of  his  legislative  duties  the  experience  of  an 


150 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


eminently  successful  business  career.  There  is 
nothing  flashy  or  ostentatious  in  his  composition,  he 
being  a peculiarly  plain,  practical,  common-sense  man, 
and  his  kind,  generous,  and  agreeable  disposition  ren- 
ders him  a^favorite  among  all  classes  of  people. 

Mr.  Bowman  was  married  in  1852  to  Miss  Lorenia 
Overvaugh,  and  is  a young  gentleman  of  high  stand- 
ing and  influence  in  all  the  private  and  social  relations 
of  life. 


CHARLES  M.  BRIGGS. 

Mr.  Briggs  is  a native  of  Hampshire  county,  Massa- 
chusetts, and  is  about  thirty-five  years  of  age.  He 
received  a classical  education,  having  graduated  at 
Union  College,  Schenectady,  in  1844,  and  after  studying 
law,  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  entered  upon  the 
practice  of  his  profession,  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
and  in  Brooklyn.  He  has  always  since  been  a resi- 
dent of  the  latter  place,  where  he  ranks  high  as  a 
young  man  of  more  than  ordinary  promise,  and  there 
is  nothing  of  the  old  fogy  about  him.  Although  a 
Kepublican,  he  is  thoroughly  democratic  in  all  his 
views  and  feelings,  and  does  not  affiliate  or  sympa- 
thize with  any  thing  sectional,  or  with  extreme  sec- 
tional legislation.  He  is  a pleasant,  sociable,  free-heart- 
ed, and  energetic  gentleman,  and  is  blessed  with  all 
those  social  attributes  which  never  fail  to  win  scores 
of  personal  and  political  friends.  In  person,  he  is  tall 
V 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


151 


and  slender,  and  of  about  medium  height  ; has  sharp 
gray  eyes,  light-brown  hair  and  whiskers,  and  an  in- 
telligent face,  which  indicates  a good  mind  and  tho- 
rough mental  culture. 


WILLIAM  BURNS. 

Mr.  Burns  is  a native  of  the  good,  old,  conservative, 
Union-loving  State  of  Maryland,  and  was  born  near 
the  city  of  Baltimore,  on  the  16th  of  May,  1831.  He 
is  of  genuine,  unmixed  Irish  extraction.  His  father, 
John  Burns,  who  came  to  America  about  forty  years 
ago,  and  settled  in  Maryland,  is  still  living,  at  the  ripe 
old  age  of  seventy-six,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Catharine  Murphy,  is  also  still  living,  at 
about  the  age  of  sixty-six. 

Mr.  Burns  received  a common  English  education,  and, 
twenty-one  years  ago,  removed  with  his  parents  to  the 
First  Ward  in  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he  has 
always  since  been  a resident.  He  served  his  time  at 
the  printing  business,  but  since  completing  his  ap- 
prenticeship, has  been  chiefly  engaged  in  the  post- 
office  department  of  that  city.  He  has  always  been  a 
staunch,  live  Democrat,  of  the  Tammany  Hall  school, 
and  as  such,  has  probably  wielded  more  influence  in 
the  ward  in  which  he  lives,  than  any  other  politician  in 
the  city  of  New  York.  He  is  not  only  active  and  inde- 
fatigable in  the  discharge  of  his  party  obligations, 
but  his  superior  knowledge  of  men,  and  the  ordinary 


152 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


modus  operandi  of  modern  party  politics,  and  his  uni- 
form consistency  and  devotion  to  principle,  together 
with  a straight-forward,  frank,  and  courteous  manner, 
have  given  him  a political  strength  which  is  almost 
irresistible  in  the  local  politics  of  the  metropolitan 
city.  He  makes  a good  representative  on  the  floor  of 
the  Assembly,  attending  closely  and  faithfully  to  every 
duty  devolving  upon  him  in  that  capacity,  and  although 
not  a shining  light  of  the  very  first  magnitude,  exer- 
cises a quiet  and  unpretending  influence,  which  is 
hardly  inferior  to  that  of  any  of  his  legislative  com- 
peers. 

Mr.  Burns  was  married,  in  1851,  to  Miss  Mary  Ellen 
Egan,  of  the  city  of  New  York,  and  belongs  to  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church.  He  is  strong,  unyielding, 
and  indulgent  in  his  devotion  as  a friend  ; liberal, 
compromising,  though  tenacious  in  his  views  as  a pol- 
itician ; and  straight-forward,  frank,  and  industrious 
in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  and  obligations  as  a 
legislator. 


JOSEPH  BUSH. 

Mr.  Bush  was  born  at  Bainbridge,  Chenango  county, 
N.  Y.,  on  the  23d  of  February,  1825.  His  paternal 
great-grandfather  was  from  Holland,  and  his  maternal 
grand-father  and  grand-mother  were  from  Connecticut. 
His  paternal  grand-father,  who  died  at  Bainbridge,  on 
the  15th  of  May,  1191,  at  the  age  of  sixty-three,  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


153 


his  paternal  grand-mother,  who  died  at  the  same  place, 
on  the  8th  of  November,  1813,  at  the  age  of  eighty- 
one,  were  both  natives  of  Massachusetts.  They  emi- 
grated from  Sheffield,  Berkshire  county,  in  that  State, 
in  May,  l'I80,  with  a family  of  four  children,  Charles, 
Japhet,  Joseph,  and  Polly,  and  settled  in  Jerrico,  now 
Bainbridge,  N.  Y.  They  were  the  first  pioneers  of 
that  town,  and  from  Cooperstown,  at  the  head  of  the 
Susquehanna,  where  there  was  then  but  one  dwelling, 
and  that  the  residence  of  Judge  Cooper,  they  descend- 
ed the  river  by  canoes  of  their  own  make,  as  there 
were  no  roads  then  to  penetrate  the  interior  forests, 
and  selected  a farm  on  the  10th  of  April,  1 Y90.  Charles 
Bush,  the  uncle  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  served 
four  years  in  the  Revolution,  and  was  at  the  battle  of 
Yorktown. 

Mr.  Busffis  father,  Joseph  Bush,  died  on  the  23d  of 
September,  1851,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one,  and  his 
mother,  Betsy  Strong,  of  Connecticut,  a sister  of 
Cyrus  Strong,  the  present  President  and  founder  of 
the  Broome  County  Bank,  at  Binghamton,  died  on  the 
5th  of  February,  1853,  at  the  age  of  seventy-four. 
They  were  married  on  the  5th  of  April,  1800,  and 
reared  a family  of  seven  children,  of  whom  only  three 
are  now  living. 

Mr.  Bush  enjoys  a practical  business  education,  and 
having  passed  several  years  successfully  in  the  lum- 
bering trade,  is  now  extensively  engaged  in  farming 
on  the  old  homestead,  selected  by  his  grand-father  in 
1790.  He  never  held  any  public  position  prior  to  his 
7 * 


154 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


election  to  the  present  House,  but  as  an  evidence  of 
his  worth  and  popularity  at  home,  it  may  he  stated, 
that  at  the  late  election,  his  own  town  gave  him  three 
hundred  and  twenty-two  votes,  while  his  opponent 
received  only  sixteen.  He  is  a gentleman  of  strong, 
practical  common-sense,  and  although  somewhat  re- 
served and  unpretending,  is  prompt,  straight-forward, 
and  scrupulously  honest  in  the  discharge  of  all  his  le- 
gislative duties.  In  politics,  he  was  originally  a Whig, 
and  never  voted  any  other  ticket  until  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  Eepublican  party,  since  which  time  he  has 
been  a staunch  Republican. 

Mr.  Bush  is  a bachelor  of  exemplary  habits,  with 
strict  integrity  and  great  energy  of  character,  and 
attends  the  Episcopal  Church. 


BENJAMIN  C.  BUTLER. 

Mr.  Butler  is  a native  of  Oxford,  Chenango  county, 
N.  Y.,  and  is  thirty-eight  years  of  age.  He  is  one  of 
the  most  inveterate  and  persistent  speakers  in  the 
House,  and  rarely  allows  a discussion  to  pass  without 
actively  participating  in  it.  The  greatest  trouble, 
however,  is  that  one  listens  and  listens  without  know- 
ing exactly  what  he  is  driving  at.  His  harangues,  on 
all  questions,  seem  an  uncorking  of  all  the  political 
cogitations  and  scrap-readings  of  his  life,  rather  than 
any  set  argument  advancing  to  a particular  point  in 
logical  progression.  His  voice  is  usually  pitched  on 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


155 


an  effeminate,  anti-baritone  key,  of  limited  range  ; and 
whenever  his  eye  rests 'on  any  one  who  appears  to  be 
scanning  him,  either  with  criticism  or  wonder,  his 
nervousness  makes  him  hurry  on  so  fast,  that  his  quick 
sentences  tumble  heels  over  head  in  their  outward 
rush,  and  it  is  really  difficult  to  hear,  much  less 
understand  him. 

Mr.  Butler  is  a country  lawyer,  doing  business  at 
Luzerne,  Warren  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  resides.  He 
sprung  from  English  stock,  and  is  said  to  occupy  a 
respectable,  though  not  very  distinguished,  position 
in  the  community  in  which  he  lives.  He  is  an  active 
and  enthusiastic  member  of  the  Republican  party, 
glorifying  the  acts  of  John  Brown,  whose  district  he 
represents,  and  is  quite  ambitious  of  political  notorie- 
ty, although  evidently  lacking  the  ability,  either  of 
head  or  of  back-bone,  to  make  any  successful  progress 
in  that  direction.  If,  however,  he  were  to  remain 
more  quiet  in  the  House,  he  would  doubtless  enjoy 
a higher  reputation,  among  his  fellow-members,  at 
least,  than  he  now  does  ; for  his  personal  appearance 
is  somewhat  in  his  favor. 


HARVEY  R.  CAD  WELL. 

Mr.  Cadwell  is  a native  of  Mount  Hope,  Orange 
county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  forty-nine  years  of  age.  He  is 
of  English  and  German  descent,  and  received  his  edu- 
cation in  the  common  schools  of  his  native  place.  His 


156 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


business  qualifications  are  of  a fair  order,  and  he  is 
now  engaged  as  a freight  captain  on  the  New  York 
& Erie  Eailroad.  In  politics,  he  has  always  been 
firmly  attached  to  the  principles  of  the  Democratic 
party,  believing  that  upon  their  supremacy  in  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  Government,  depends  the  salvation 
of  the  whole  country,  and  was  elected  to  his  present 
position  in  the  Legislature,  from  a Republican  district, 
by  over  one  hundred  majority.  There  are  but  few 
men  in  the  House  who  attend  to  the  discharge  of 
their  duties  more  faithfully  than  Mr.  Cadwell,  though 
he  is  evidently  out  of  his  element,  and  will,  perhaps, 
leave  no  very  distinguishing  mark  upon  the  legisla- 
tive records  of  the  State,  during  his  present  official 
career. 


THEOPHILUS  C.  CALLICOT. 

Mr.  Callicot  is  about  thirty-four  years  of  age,  and  is 
descended  from  an  English  family,  who  originally  set- 
tled in  Virginia.  When  ten  years  of  age,  he  was  sent 
from  his  father’s  farm,  in  Fairfax  county,  Virginia,  to 
a grammar  school  in  Alexandria,  then  in  the  District 
of  Columbia,  where  he  remained  several  years.  His 
parents,  however,  removing  to  the  eastern  shore 
Maryland,  he  was  transferred  to  the  Academy  at  New 
London,  Chester  county,  Pennsylvania,  where  he  was 
prepared  for  college.  He  then,  in  1841,  entered  the 
Sophomore  class  of  Delaware  College,  at  Newark, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


157 


Del.,  where  he  finished  his  course,  and  afterwards 
received  the  degree  of  A.M.  He  subsequently  studied 
law  at  Elkton,  Md.,  with  the  Hon.  Hiram  McCullough, 
an  eminent  lawyer,  who  is  now  one  of  the  two  Com- 
missioners appointed  by  the  Legislature  of  Maryland 
to  amend  and  simplify  the  practice  and  codify  the  laws 
of  that  State.  Mr.  Callicot  afterwards  attended;  the 
lectures  and  moot-courts  at  the  Yale  College  Law 
School,  and  was  a student  of  the  New  York  practice 
in  the  office  of  the  distinguished  and  lamented  Na- 
thaniel B.  Blunt.  'Among  his  class-mates  at  the  Yale 
Law  School,  was  the  Hon.  Joseph  E.  Brown,  the  pre- 
sent popular  Governor  of  the  State  of  Georgia. 

In  1847,  Mr.  Callicot  was  admitted  to  practice  in 
all  the  courts  of  the  State  of  New  York,  after  passing 
a rigid  examination  in  the  first  class  who  presented 
themselves  before  the  Supreme  Court  for  that  purpose 
under  the  new  Constitution.  About  this  time  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Lyman,  a native  of  New  York,  and  located 
himself  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  where  he  has  always 
since  resided,  doing  business  at  No.  48  Pine  street,  in 
the  city  of  New  York,  as  the  senior  partner  of  the  law 
firm  of  Callicot  & Levings.  In  politics,  he  has  always 
been  a firm  and  consistent  Democrat,  but  never  a vio- 
lent partisan.  He  was  never  a candidate  for  any  office 
until  the  Democrats  of  his  district,  without  any  solici- 
tation on  his  part,  put  him  forward  for  the  present 
Assembly.  His  district,  comprising  the  Fourth  and 
Tenth  W ards  of  Brooklyn,  has  a population  of  more 
than  forty  thousand,  and  real  and  personal  estate  to 


158 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


the  assessed  value  of  more  than  fifteen  millions  of  dol- 
lars. It  was  represented  in  the  Legislatures  of  1858 
and  ^59,  by  General  Duryea,  a Republican,  and  this  is 
the  first  time  it  has  been  represented  by  a Democrat. 

Mr.  Callicot  is  a man  of  superior  personal  and  politi- 
cal popularity,  and  received  the  vote  of  the  Democratic 
members  of  the  House,  at  the  opening  of  the  present 
session,  as  their  candidate  for  the  Speakership. 


WILLIAM  H.  CARTER. 

Mr.  Carter  is  a New  Englander  by  birth  and  educa- 
tion, having  been  born  at  Wickford,  Rhode  Island,  on 
the  3d  of  December,  1813.  He  came  into  New  York 
on  the  11th  of  February,  1821,  when  only  thirteen 
years  of  age,  and  located  in  Oswego  county.  He  is 
of  English  and  Irish  extraction,  and  is  descended,  on 
his  mother’s  side,  from  Aaron  Davis,  who  settled  in  the 
colony  of  Massachusetts,  about  the  year  1120.  His 
maternal  grand-mother  was  the  daughter  of  Stephen 
Bowyer,  an  Englishman,  who  settled  in  the  town  of 
North  Kingstown,  Rhode  Island,  about  the  year  1160. 
His  father,  Benjamin  P.  Carter,  who  was  master  of  a 
merchant  ship,  sailed  from  Baltimore,  in  April,  1824, 
for  Gibralter,  and  was  never  again  heard  from,  and 
his  mother,  Phebe  Davis,  died  at  Wickford,  in  October, 
1846,  at  the  age  of  fifty-four. 

Mr.  Carter  received  only  a limited  common  English 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


159 


education,  and  never  attended  school  after  attaining 
the  age  of  sixteen.  He  was  engaged  on  a farm  until 
1833,  and  from  the  spring  of  1835,  until  the  spring  of 
1852,  was  employed  in  the  canal  transportation 
business.  Since  then  he  has  had  charge  of  the  steam- 
tugs,  plying  on  the  Oneida  lake  and  river,  and 
belonging  to  De  Witt  C.  Littlejohn  and  George 
A.  Hoyt.  His  present  position  in  the  House,  to 
which  he  was  chosen  by  nearly  six  hundred  majority, 
is  the  first  prominent  public  office  he  has  ever  held, 
but  the  ability  and  industry  with  which  he  discharges 
the  duties  imposed  upon  him  by  it,  show  conclusively, 
that  he  is  the  right  man  in  the  right  place.”  He 
was  a Whig  previous  to  the  inauguration  of  the 
Republican  movement,  but  since  then  has  been  a zeal- 
ous and  consistent  member  of  that  party. 

Mr.  Carter  was  married  on  the  13th  of  July,  1836, 
to  Lydia  Kenyon,  and  attends  the  Baptist  Church. 
His  moral,  as  well  as  his  social  qualities,  are  of 
the  highest  order,  and  he  is,  both  personally  and 
politically,  one  of  the  most  popular  young  men  in 
the  community  in  which  he  resides. 


CLARK  S.  CHITTENDEN. 

Mr.  Chittenden  is  one  of  those  self-made  men  of 
whom  our  country  may  justly  feel  proud.  He  is  sup- 
posed to  be  of  Welsh  descent,  and  was  born  on  the 


160 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


16th  of  May,  1803,  in  Benson,  Rutland  county,  Ver- 
mont. He  is  a brother  of  the  Hon.  J oseph  Chittenden, 
who  has  been  a prominent  and  influential  member  of 
both  branches  of  the  Legislature  in  that  State.  His 
father,  Solomon  Chittenden,  who  died  on  the  9th  of 
February,  1855,  at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety-three, 
was  a Revolutionary  soldier,  a true  patriot,  and  an 
upright  citizen,  and  lived  in  happy  wedlock  with 
Susannah  Sanford,  the  mother  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  over  seventy  years.  She  survived  her  husband 
until  August,  1855,  when  sho'  died,  at  the  age  of 
ninety. 

Mr.  Chittenden  received  a common-school  education, 
and  came  from  his  native  State  to  New  York,  in  1822. 
He  was  always  an  enterprising  and  eminently  suc- 
cessful merchant,  until  April,  1858,  when  he  retired 
from  business,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  sons,  K.  S. 
& Y.  A.  Chittenden,  in  the  same  business.  Since 
then,  he  has  devoted  his  time  chiefly  to  his  farm. 
In  politics,  he  was  formerly  a Whig,  zealously  defend- 
ing the  principles  and  policy  of  that  party,  but  was 
one  among  the  first  to  engage  in  the  Republican 
movement.  He  has  been  a Justice  of  the  Peace  some 
twenty  years  in  the  town  where  he  resides,  and  was 
Supervisor  some  eight  years.  He  has  also  been  post- 
master some  twelve  yeaTs.  His  position  throughout 
the  community  in  which  he  is  best  known,  is  that  of  a 
man  of  influence,  character,  and  real  moral  worth,  and 
he  discharges  the  duties  of  his  new  position  at  Al- 
bany with  a degree  of  honesty  and  intelligence,  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


161 


which  his  constituents  may  well  feel  proud.  He  never 
makes  any  unusual  display  in  the  House  at  speech- 
making or  otherwise,  and  is  only  known  by  his  ster- 
ling good  sense,  sound  judgment,  and  diligent  atten- 
tion to  the  business  of  legislation. 

Mr.  Chittenden  was  married  in  January,  1821,  to 
Miss  Julia  A.  Sheldon,  and  is  an  active  and  consistent 
member  of  the  Congregational  Church. 


DAVID  CLAEK. 

Mr.  Clark  was  born  in  October,  1800,  in  Colchester, 
New  London  county.  Conn.,  and  is  of  English  origin. 
In  the  fall  of  1803  his  parents  removed  to  the  Chenan- 
go valley  in  New  York,  and  located  in  what  was  then 
the  town  of  Hamilton,  Chenango  county,  but  which 
subsequently,  by  subdivision,  became  the  town  of 
Lebanon,  Madison  county.  His  father,  Daniel  Clark, 
and  his  mother,  a daughter  of  Peter  Bulkley,  both  died 
in  that  town,  in  1853,  at  an  advanced  age. 

The  educational  advantages  of  Mr.  Clark  were  quite 
limited,  and  with  the  exception  of  two  terms  at  the 
Academy,  at  Gilbertsville,  Otsego  county,  N.  Y.,  he 
passed  all  his  school-boy  days  in  the  common  schools 
of  the  almost  uncultivated  wilderness  in  which  his 
parents  settled  on  first  coming  to  New  York.  Since 
then  he  has  devoted  his  time  to  agricultural  pursuits, 
after  having  taught  school  a while,  and  now  sustains 
the  reputation,  wherever  he  is  known,  of  an  energetic. 


162 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


practical,  and  successful  farmer.  He  held  the  office  of 
Magistrate  of  the  town  of  Lebanon,  for  a few  years, 
and  between  1843  and  ^58  was  Supervisor  nine  years. 
He  was  formerly  a Whig,  until  the  organization  of  the 
Republican  movement,  and  since  then  has  been  a 
zealous  and  unyielding  defender  of  the  doctrines  and 
policy  of  that  party.  He  is  a man  of  decided  influence 
and  ability,  showing  great  weight  of  character  in 
every  thing  in  which  he  engages,  and  although  his 
career  in  the  Assembly  will  not  have  been  a very 
brilliant  or  attractive  one  to  the  casual  observer,  it  will 
be  what  is  far  better,  and  more  material  to  the  interests 
of  the  State  and  his  constituents — straight-forward, 
quiet,  substantial,  and  perfectly  satisfactory. 

Mr.  Clark  was  married  in  1830,  to  a daughter  of  the 
late  Dr.  Constant  Murick,  of  Lebanon,  and  although 
not  a member  of  any  church,  is  a firm  believer  in  the 
Christian  Church. 


JEREMIAH  CLARK. 

Mr.  Clark  is  one  of  the  oldest,  most  substantial,  and 
valuable  men  on  the  floor  of  the  House.  He  was  born 
in  the  town  of  Newburgh,  Orange  county,  N.  Y.,  on 
the  22d  of  October,  1796.  He  was  named  after  Judge 
Jeremiah  Clark,  of  the  town  of  Cornwall,  in  that  coun- 
ty, and  is  a member  of  the  same  family  to  which  he 
belonged.  He  is  the  only  survivor  of  five  children. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


163 


four  sons  and  a daughter,  the  latter  of  whom,  endowed 
and  gave  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  to  the  Garritt 
Institute  at  Chicago,  and  who  was,  at  the  time  of  her 
death,  the  widow  of  the  Hon.  Augustus  Garritt,  ex- 
Mayor  of  that  city.  Both  his  parents,  Bennoni  Clark 
and  Amy  Dermott,  are  now  dead,  the  former  having 
died  on  the  13th  of  May,  1845,  and  the  latter  on  the 
20th  of  September,  1849.  They  were  both  seventy- 
eight  years  of  age  at  the  time  of  their  death,  and  were 
well  and  favorably  known  throughout  all  that  section 
of  country  in  which  they  lived,  for  their  uprightness, 
intelligence,  and  genuine  moral  worth. 

Mr.  Clarkes  educational  advantages  were  confined  to 
the  rude  log  school-houses  of  his  early  youth,  and  he 
never  received  any  thing  more  than  a common  English 
education.  On  the  15th  of  June,  1820,  he  was  mar- 
ried to  Miss  Finetta,  only  daughter  of  the  late  Thomas 
D.  Bingham,  and  about  that  time  removed  to  Marl- 
borough, Ulster  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  has  always 
since  been  very  extensively  engaged  in  farming  and 
milling.  He  has  held  various  unimportant  town  offices 
since  1835,  but  never  occupied  any  prominent  public 
position  until  his  promotion  to  the  seat  he  now  fills  so 
well  in  the  Assembly.  He  has  always  been  a Demo- 
crat, of  the  old-fashioned  style,  but  has  never  been 
ambitious  of  political  distinction,  preferring  to  de- 
vote his  whole  time  and  attention  to  his  own  private 
business. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Clark  are  both  exemplary  members 
of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  in  the  village  of 


164 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Marlborough,  and  occupy  the  same  pew  his  parents 
did  before  him.  He  is  a kind-hearted,  benevolent,  and 
hospitable  gentleman,  and  possesses,  in  the  very  high- 
est degree,  all  the  elements  of  personal  and  political 
popularity. 


PHILETUS  CLAKK. 

Mr.  Clark  is  an  ordinary,  old-fashioned  farmer,  re- 
siding in  Otisco,  Onondaga  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he 
was  born,  and  is  fifty-two  years  of  age.  He  is  of  pure 
English  descent.  His  reputation,  at  home,  is  that  of  a 
quiet,  industrious,  and  respectable  gentleman,  devoting 
himself  assiduously  and  somewhat  successfully  to  his 
private  agricultural  pursuits,  and  he  was  elected  to 
the  seat  he  now  fills  in  the  House  by  upwards  of  one 
thousand  majority.  He  sometimes  attempts  to  parti- 
cipate in  the  debates  of  that  body,  but  although  pos- 
sessed of  some  intellectual  force,  generally  fails,  and 
would,  doubtless,  acquire  a higher  standing  among 
his  legislative  associates,  were  he  to  keep  perfectly 
quiet.  Still,  he  is  a man  of  pure  motives  and  instincts, 
exhibiting  constant  signs  of  an  earnest  desire  to 
acquit  himself  creditably  in  the  discharge  of  his 
representative  duties,  and  may  terminate  his  official 
career  with  better  success  than  he  appears  to  have 
begun  it. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


165 


THOMAS  COLEMAN. 

Mr.  Coleman  was  born  on  the  16th  of  June,  1808,  in 
the  town  of  Barnstable,  Barnstable  county.  Mass.  His 
father,  Nathaniel  Coleman,  who  was  born,  and  spent 
his  life,  in  that  town,  engaged  in  sea-faring,  mostly  in 
the  coasting  trade,  was  of  English  descent  ; and  his 
ancestors  were  among  the  early  settlers  of  Plymouth 
Colony.  He  died  in  1848,  at  the  age  of  sixty-seven. 

Mr.  Coleman  had  but  very  slight  opportunities  of 
obtaining  an  education,  they  having  been  merely  such 
as  the  common  district  school  of  his  native  town  afford- 
ed, for  a few  months  only  in  each  winter,  till  he  was 
sixteen  years  of  age.  He  then,  in  1824,  entered  a 
store  in  New  Bedford,  Mass.,  as  a clerk,  which  position 
he  continued  to  occupy  till  1827,  when  he  went  to  the 
city  of  Troy,  where  he  engaged  in  the  mercantile  busi- 
ness, and  where  he  has  since  resided.  He  is  now,  and 
has  been  for  about  twenty  years  past,  a lumber  mer- 
chant, and  has  done  an  extensive  and  successful 
business.  He  was  married  in  January,  1839,  to  Miss 
Catharine  Jane,  daughter  of  Lewis  Eichards,  Esq.,  a 
merchant  of  Troy.  For  several  years  he  was  a mem- 
ber of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Troy  Young 
Meffs  Association  ; was  Vice-President  and  Manager 
of  the  Association  ; and  was  its  President  from  1844 
till  1845.  In  1852  he  was  elected  a Director  of  the 
Bank  of  Troy,  and  in  1856  was  chosen  a Governor  of 
the  Marshall  Infirmary,  a charitable  institution  founded 


166 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETOHES. 


in  Troy  by  the  late  Benjamin  Marshall,  of  that  city. 
In  the  spring  of  1857,  he  was  elected  Alderman  of  the 
Third  Ward  of  Troy,  and  still  holds  that  office,  as  also 
that  of  Bank  Director,  and  Governor  of  the  Marshall 
Infirmary. 

Mr.  Coleman,  when  he  had  become  a voter,  in  1829, 
united  with  the  National  Republican  party  of  that 
day,  and  afterwards,  in  1834,  with  the  Whig  party, 

I with  which  he  continued  to  act  during  its  organiza- 
tion—afterwards,  with  the  American  party.  He  was 
elected  to  the  Assembly  of  1858,  on  a union  ticket,” 
by  the  Americans  and  Republicans,  and  was  re-elected 
at  the  last  election  by  the  same  combination.  He  has 
not  had  much  experience  as  a public  speaker,  but 
when  he  does  speak,  he  expresses  himself  fluently, 
directly  to  the  point,  in  good  language,  and  with  a 
clear  understanding  of  his  subject.  He  is  esteemed, 
at  home,  as  a man  of  strict  honesty,  and  sound,  prac- 
tical judgment,  and  considering  his  lack  of  early 
education,  and  influential  friends  to  aid  him,  is  a fair 
sample  of  a self-made  man — the  artificer  of  his  own 
fortune  and  position.  He  attends  the  Unitarian 
Church. 


WILLIAM  L.  COLES. 

Mr.  Coles  is  a native  of  Delaware  county,  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  was  born  on  the  11th  of  September,  1829. 
His  father’s  family  were  from  Westchester  county,  N.  Y., 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


167 


and  his  mother^s  from  the  little  State  of  Delaware. 
His  father,  Enoch  Coles,  who  was  a soldier  in  the  war 
of  1812,  died  about  five  years  ago,  in  Delaware  coun- 
ty, Pennsylvania,  where  his  wife,  the  mother  of  the 
subject  of  this  sketch,  is  still  residing,  at  an  advanced 
age. 

Mr.  Coles  received  a good  English  education  in  his 
native  place,  and  at  the  age  of  fifteen  went  to  the  city 
of  New  York,  where  he  has  since  been  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  silver  ware.  In  politics,  he  has  always 
been  a Democrat  of  the  Soft-shell  stamp,  and  comes  to 
the  Legislature  from  a district  hitherto  strongly  anti- 
Democratic.  He  is  a young  gentleman  of  fine  per- 
sonal qualities,  as  well  as  of  considerable  intellectual 
strength,  and  shrewdness,  and  is  quiet,  though  indus- 
trious and  efficient,  in  the  discharge  of  his  legislative 
duties.  In  all  his  private  and  political  conduct,  he  is 
straight-forward,  frank,  and  decided,  and  is  a fair  re- 
pres'entative  of  the  “Young  American’^  spirit  of  the 
age  in  which  we  live. 

Mr.  Coles  was  married,  in  1851,  to  Miss  Margaret 
Ann  Palmer,  and  attends  the  Methodist  Church,  of 
which  his  wife  is  a member. 


LORENZO  D.  COLLINS. 

Mr.  Collins  was  born  in  1822,  in  the  town  of  White- 
hall, Washington  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  of  English  de- 
scent. Both  his  paternal  and  maternal  grand-fathers 


168 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


were  soldiers  in  the  Revolutionary  war.  Daniel  Col- 
lins, his  father,  who  served  in  the  war  of  1812,  is  still 
living,  at  the  age  of  seventy-five,  and  his  mother  died 
in  1852,  at  the  age  of  sixty-three. 

Mr.  Collins  was  raised  a farmer,  and  received 
nothing  more  than  a common  English  education.  In 

1841,  he  embarked  in  the  mercantile  trade  in  the  vil- 

*■ 

lage  of  West  Troy,  where  he  still  resides,  and  is  still 
so  engaged.  In  1852,  he  was  elected  a Trustee,  and 
in  1853,  President,  of  West  Troy,  and  was  successful 
in  both  instances,  over  large  Democratic  majorities. 
He  held  the  position  of  Captain  of  the  West  Troy 
Light  Guards,  from  1858  till  ’57,  and  during  the 
last  four  years  has  been  a Director  in  the  Union  Bank 
of  Troy.  He  was  elected  to  the  Assembly  of  1859,  by 
a union  of  Americans  and  Republicans,  and  occupied 
a conspicuous  position  in  that  body  on  the  Standing 
Committee  on  Canals.  In  politics,  he  was  formerly  a 
Henry  Clay  Whig,  and  remained  firmly  attached  to 
that  party  till  it  abandoned  its  organization,  when  he 
enlisted  in  the  cause  of  Republicanism.  He  is  an 
active  and  influential  politician,  and  enjoys  a high  de- 
gree of  personal  and  political  popularity,  both  inside 
and  outside  of  the  House. 

Mr.  Collins  was  married  in  1848,  to  Miss  Sarah 
Frances  Clark,  who  died  in  the  same  year,  and  in 
1854,  married  his  present  estimable  lady.  Miss  Saman- 
tha L.  Hubbell,  by  whom  he  has  three  children.  He 
attends  the  Methodist  Church. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


169 


FEEDEKICK  A.  CONKLING. 

Mr.  Conkling  is  a native  of  Canajoharie,  Montgom- 
ery county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  of  English,  Scotch,  and  Ger- 
man descent.  He  was  born  on  the  22d  of  August, 
1816,  and  is  the  son  of  Alfred  Conkling,  whose  repu- 
tation stands  high  throughout  the  State. 

Mr.  Conkling  was  educated  at  the  Albany  Academy, 
passing  through  all  the  departments,  and  is  now  a 
retired  merchant  in  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he 
has  been  an  eminently  successful  business  man.  He 
was  a member  of  the  Assembly  in  1854,  and  was  again 
elected  in  the  fall  of  1858,  by  a majority  of  nearly 
four  hundred  over  his  predecessor,  the  Hon.  Philip  W. 
Engs.  This  year  he  comes  back  by  an  increased  ma- 
jority. During  the  last  session  of  the  Legislature, 
he  was  Chairman  of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Ways 
and  Means,  and,  as  such,  acquired  a very  high  rep- 
utation for  the  strict  integrity  and  scrupulous  econ- 
omy with  which  he  fearlessly  discharged  the  duties 
of  that  position.  His  services  to  the  tax-paying  people 
of  the  State,  in  that  capacity,  were  invaluable,  the 
Committee  of  Ways  and  Means  being  too  often  pros- 
tituted to  the  profligate  purposes  of  a ravenous  lobby. 

Mr.  Conkling  was  a Whig  till  the  dismemberment  of 
that  party,  when  he  at  once  became  a Kepublican. 
He  is  a man  of  strong  common-sense  ; is  distinguished 
for  his  honesty  and  integrity  ; is  a forcible  and  con- 
cise speaker,  and  is  one  of  the  leading  and  most  in- 
8 


no 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


dustrious  men  in  the  House,  seldom  being  absent  from 
his  seat  on  the  floor,  or  from  his  place  on  the  various 
committees  of  which  he  is  a member,  during  the  recess. 


EBENEZER  a COOK. 

Mr.  Cook  was  born  on  the  8th  of  February,  1809,  in 
fche  then  town  of  Paris,  now  Kirkland,  Oneida  county, 
N.  Y.  He  is  of  English  descent,  and  his  ancestors 
came  from  England  about  the  year  1630.  His  paternal 
grand-father  removed  from  Northampton,  Massachu- 
setts, to  Paris,  Oneida  county,  N.  Y.,  about  seventy- 
five  years  ago,  and  settled  in  that  part  of  the  town 
now  called  Kirkland,  where  he  died  at  an  advanced 
age,  about  the  year  1811.  His  father,  Elihu  Cook, 
died  at  the  same  place  on  the  1th  of  March,  1819,  at 
the  age  of  thirty-seven,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Sally  Gillett,  and  who  was  a native  of 
Lebanon,  Connecticut,  died  in  September,  1859,  at  the 
age  of  seventy-five. 

Mr.  Cook  received  a very  ordinary  English  educa- 
tion, and  is  entirely  a self-made  man,  having  been  left 
poor,  and  almost  alone,  at  the  tender  age  of  ten,  by  the 
death  of  his  father.  His  occupation  has  always  been 
that  of  an  honest  and  industrious  farmer,  in  connection 
with  which  he  has  extensively  associated  the  dairy 
business,  and  is  well  and  favorably  known  throughout 
the  county  of  Chautauqua,  for  his  uprightness,  integ- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Ill 


rity,  and  ability  as  a business  man.  He  held  various 
town  offices  before  his  election  to  his  present  position, 
and  was  Supervisor  during  the  years  1856  and 
In  politics,  he  was  formerly  a Whig,  and  remained 
firmly  attached  to  that  party  until  the  repeal  of  the 
Missouri  Compromise,  when  he  was  among  the  first  to 
enlist  in  the  Kepublican  enterprise.  He  possesses  a 
large  fund  of  general  and  useful  knowledge,  being  a 
constant  and  attentive  reader,  and  is  readily  taken  for 
a man  of  liberal  education,  and  thorough  mental 
dicipline.  Although  not  a boisterous  politician,  he 
very  properly  places  a very  high  estimate  upon  the 
elective  franchise,  and  never  fails  to  cast  his  vote  at 
the  most  unimportant  election, 

Mr.  Cook  was  married,  in  January,  1830,  to  Miss 
Betsy  Anthony,  by  whom  he  has  ten  children  living, 
and  belongs  to  the  Presbyterian  Church. 


GERRY  COONLEY. 

Mr.  Coonley  is  a cherry  little  old  Knickerbocker 
Dutchman,  about  sixty  years  of  age — cheerful,  chatty, 
and  good-natured,  and  hops  around  the  chamber  much 
after  the  fashion  of  an  old-school  grand-father  super- 
vising the  gambols  of  his  second  generation.  . He  is 
the  successor  in  the  Assembly  of  the  Hon,  Augustus 
R.  Macomber,  one  of  the  most  shrewd  and  intelligent 
young  gentlemen  at  Albany  laat  winter. 


172 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Mr.  Coonley  is  an  honest  and  industrious  farmer,  re- 
siding in  the  town  of  New  Baltimore,  Greene  co.,  N.  Y. 
He  is  wholly  unaccustomed  to  legislative  life,  hav- 
ing always  been  simply  and  emphatically  a cultivator 
of  the  soil  ; but  is  possessed  of  good,  sound  common- 
sense,  and  was  elected  to  the  seat  he  fills  in  the  House 
by  a majority  of  two  hundred  and  ninety-five  over 
the  combined  Opposition.  He  is  simply  a voting 
member,  rarely  venturing  to  say  Mr.  Speaker,”  but 
is,  doubtless,  influenced  by  the  purest  of  motives,  and 
is  anxious  to  discharge  the  duties  of  his  position  with 
credit  to  himself  and  satisfaction  to  his  constituents. 


JOSEPH  P.  COOPER. 

Mr.  Cooper  was  born  in  1826,  and  is,  therefore, 
about  thirty-four  years  of  age.  He  is  of  English  de- 
scent, and  his  ancestors  were  Quakers,  as  are,  also, 
himself  and  parents,  the  latter  of  whom  are  still  liv- 
ing. His  father,  William  Cooper,  is  now  about  sixty- 
eight  years  of  age,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Jane  Thornhill,  is  about  the  age  of  fifty-six. 

Mr.  Cooper  received  a common  English  education, 
and  has  been  chiefly  engaged  as  an  accountant.  He, 
at  present,  holds  the  office  of  Notary  Public,  in  the 
city  of  New  York,  and  was  elected  to  the  Assembly 
by  a complimentary  plurality  in  a Democratic  district. 
He  never  took  any  active  part  in  politics  until  the  or- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


m 


ganization  of  the  Republican  party,  of  which  he  was 
one  of  the  earliest  and  most  earnest  supporters. 
During  the  past  two  years  he  has  been  a member  of 
the  Republican  General  Committee  of  the  City  and 
County  of  New  York,  and  is  strongly  attached  to  the 
principles  and  policy  of  his  party.  He  has  the  honor 
to  represent  the  district  in  which  Gov.  Morgan  resides, 
and  in  which  there  are,  perhaps,  more  public  institu- 
tions than  in  any  other  district  in  the  city  of  New 
York.  His  business  qualifications  are  of  a superior 
order,  and  he  has  shown  himself  prompt,  straight-for- 
ward, and  intelligent,  in  the  discharge  of  his  official 
duties. 

Mr.  Cooper  is  a widower,  and  a gentleman  of  con- 
siderable personal  popularity.  He  is  rather  prepos- 
sessing in  his  personal  appearance,  being  tall,  and 
elegantly  formed,  with  light,  curly  hair,  clear,  blue 
eyes,  and  a smooth,  fair-complexioned  face,  and  is,  al- 
together, one  of  the  most  agreeable  and  pleasing  men 
in  the  House. 


RICHARD  J.  CORNELIUS. 

Col.  Cornelius  was  born  in  1806,  in  the  town  of 
Stanford,  Dutchess  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  of  Scotch  and 
Dutch  descent,  and  both  his  parents,  who  removed  to 
Stanford  in  1800,  were  natives  of  Queens  county.  Long 
Island.  His  mother  died  in  1821,  and  his  father,  in 
1842. 


lu 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Col.  Cornelms  received  only  a common  English  edu- 
cation, and  was  successfully  engaged  in  teaching  in 
his  native  town,  and  in  Amityville,  Suffolk  county, 
where  he  now  resides,  from  the  age  of  twenty,  till 
about  the  year  1835,  since  which  time  he  has  been 
chiefly  engaged  in  the  mercantile  trade,  besides  being 
several  years  proprietor  of  a line  of  stages  running 
from  Amityville  to  Brooklyn.  He  has  filled  various 
town  offices  since  1835  ; is  now,  and  has  been  post- 
master about  seven  years  ; was  Captain  of  the  13Hh 
Regiment  of  Infantry  ; and  subsequently  was  pro- 
moted to  the  position  of  Colonel,  from  which  he  was 
honorably  discharged  upon  the  repeal  of  the  law.  He 
was  a member  of  the  Assembly  in  1859,  and  served 
with  considerable  success  in  that  body  as  a mem- 
ber of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Petitions  of 
Aliens,  and  on  the  floor  of  the  House.  In  politics,  he 
has  always  been  an  old-fashioned  Democrat,  of  the 
Andrew  Jackson  school,  and  was  re-elected  to  the  As- 
sembly by  a large  increased  majority.  He  was  brought 
up  to  attend  the  Friends  or  Quaker  Church,  but  be- 
longs to  no  religious  sect  ; was  married,  in  1835,  to 
Miss  Pheba  Ireland  ; and  is  one  of  the  substantial 
men  of  the  House,  always  dischfirging  honestly  and 
faithfully  every  duty  devolving  upon  him  by  virtue  of 
his  position.  He  is,  likewise,  one  of  the  most  whole- 
souled,  jovial,  and  generous  men  in  the  House,  and 
has  troops  of  personal  as  well  as  political  friends. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


175 


JOHN  W.  COUCHMAN. 

Mr.  Couchman  was  born  on  the  17th  of  April,  1814. 
He  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Broom,  Schoharie  county, 
N.  Y.,  and  belongs  to  one  of  the  largest,  most  respect- 
able, and  influential  families  in  that  section  of  the 
State.  He  is  of  German  descent.  His  great-grand- 
father came  from  Germany  to  Dutchess  county,  N.  Y., 
where  he  married,  and  reared  an  industrious  and  re- 
spectable family.  His  father,  Philip  Couchman,  who 
died  on  the  6th  of  June,  1857,  married  Zelpha  Winans, 
the  mother  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  and  the 
daughter  of  John  Winans,  a Baptist  minister,  formerly 
of  Connecticut,  and  settled  on  a farm  near  Livingston- 
ville,  Schoharie  county,  where  he  brought  up  a large 
and  respectable  family,  consisting  of  seven  sons  and 
three  daughters.  Mr.  Couchman^s  mother  is  still  liv- 
ing, at  the  age  of  sixty-eight,  on  the  old  homestead, 
which  he  has  recently  purchased,  with  a view  of  mak- 
ing it  his  future  permanent  residence. 

Mr.  Couchman  received  a good  common-school  edu- 
cation, and  has  always  been  chiefly  engaged  in  farming. 
He  has  never  aspired  to  political  preferment,  having  fre- 
quently declined  various  nominations,  but  during  the 
past  five  years,  has  been  Assessor  of  the  town  in 
which  he  resides.  He  has  always  been  a Democrat  of 
the  Jeffersonian  school,  save  in  1855,  when  he  voted 
the  American  ticket,  in  consequence  of  the  conflicting 
factions  into  which  the  Democratic  party  was  then  di- 


1T6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


vided.  He  is  a man  of  strict  intregrity  and  upright- 
ness of  character,  and  enjoys  a high  degree  of  personal 
and  political  popularity,  wherever  he  is  known. 

Mr.  Couchman  was  married  in  1841,  to  Selina  Mace,  of 
Broome  county,  a daughter  ofCapt.  Hiram  Mace,  an 
old  and  respectable  inhabitant  of  that  county.  During 
the  past  seventeen  years,  he  has  been  a prominent 
member  of  the  Methodist  Church,  and  for  the  past  six 
years  has  been  an  ordained  minister  in  that  denomi- 
nation. 


ULYSSES  P.  CRANE. 

Mr.  Crane  was  born  on  the  11th  of  April,  1801,  in 
the  town  of  Madison,  Madison  county,  N.  Y.  When 
two  years  of  age,  he  removed,  with  his  parents,  into 
the  town  of  Fabius,  Onondaga  county,  N.  Y.,  and 
from  thence,  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  to  the  town  of  Free- 
dom, Cattaraugus  county,  where  he  now  resides.  He 
is  of  English  descent,  and  both  his  parents,  Francis 
Crane  and  Polly  Yaughan,  are  now  dead,  the  former 
having  died  on  the  12th  of  October,  1850,  at  the  age 
of  seventy-two,  and  the  latter  on  the  14th  of  April, 
1845,  at  the  age  of  seventy-one. 

Mr.  Crane  received  a common  English  education, 
and  since  the  age  of  twenty  has  owned  and  superin- 
tended a farm.  He  was  elected  a Justice  of  the 
Peace  in  1844,  which  position  he  occupied  some  twelve 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES.  17t 

3^ears,  and  in  1850  was  one  of  the  Session  Justices  in 
the  county  where  he  resides.  He  was  always  a Whig 
until  the  disruption  of  that  party,  when  he  became  a 
staunch  and  uncompromising  Republican.  He  is  one 
of  the  most  substantial  men  in  the  House,  and  dis- 
charges his  duties  faithfully  and  conscientiously.  He 
occupies  a high  social  and  political  position  at  home, 
and  is  regarded  as  a man  of  more  than  ordinary  influ- 
ence and  usefulness  wherever  he  is  known.  During 
the  past  fifteen  years  he  has  devoted  a large 
share  of  his  time  to  the  practice  of  the  law,  and  has 
acquired  considerable  reputation  for  the  skill  and 
ability  with  which  he  has  generally  conducted  his 
cases.  He  is  a large,  quiet,  substantial-looking  man, 
with  firmness  and  good-nature  in  his  face,  and  his 
personal  appearance  is  a reliable  index  of  his  whole 
character. 

Mr.  Crane  was  married  on  the  IHh  of  October, 
1826,  to  Miss  Sylvia  Randell,  and  usually  attends  the 
Methodist  Church. 


WICKHAM  R.  CROCKER. 

Dr.  Crocker  was  born  in  1814,  near  the  city  of 
BatBi,  England.  When  about  eight  years  of  age,  he 
came  to  America,  with  his  parents,  who  settled  in  the 
State  of  New  York,  and  who  died  in  Steuben  county, 
about  ten  years  ago,  at  a ripe  old  age. 


178 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Dr.  Crocker  received  a liberal  academical  educa- 
tion, and  was  prepared  for  the  medical  profession  at 
Geneva.  He  was  then  extensively  engaged  in  practice 
until  about  seven  years  ago,  when  he  partially  re- 
tired from  his  profession,  in  consequence  of  impaired 
health.  He  has  held  various  town  offices,  including 
that  of  Justice  of  the  Peace  four  years  ; was  post- 
master under  the  administration  of  President  Pierce  ; 
and  occupied  the  position  of  Surgeon  in  the  Militia 
under  Governor  Bouck.  He  was  elected  a member 
of  the  Assembly  in  the  fall  of  1858,  by  a large 
majority,  and  served  with  considerable  distinction 
during  the  last  session  of  the  Legislature,  both  on 
the  floor  of  the  House,  and  as  Chairman  of  the  Stand- 
ing Committee  on  Expenditures  of  the  House,  and 
as  a member  of  the  Committee  on  Medical  Societies 
and  Colleges.  He  has  shown  himself  fully  capable 
of  discharging  properly  the  duties  of  a legislative 
position,  and  is  again  returned  to  the  Assembly  by  a 
complimentary  vote. 

Although  voting  for  Mr.  Van  Buren  in  1848,  Dr. 
Crocker  was  always  a straight-forward,  consistent 
Democrat  till  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise, 
when  he  became  a Republican.  He  is  an  intelligent 
and  very  active  and  useful  man,  and  is  highly 
esteemed  wherever  he  is  known — especially  in  the 
county  of  Steuben,  where  he  has  resided  for  twenty 
years.  He  is  a good  speaker,  though  rarely  partici- 
pating, to  any  considerable  extent,  in  the  debates  of 
the  house,  and  is  generally  successful  in  carrying  all 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


179 


his  points.  He  is  high-minded,  dignified,  independent, 
and  self-reliant,  both  in  public  and  private  life,  as  is 
clearly  indicated  by  his  tall,  manly  personal  appear- 
ance, and  is  scrupulously  upright  and  honest.  Dr. 
C.  was  married  in  1853  to  his  last  wife,  Miss  Helen 
M.  Flint,  who  died  in  the  spring  of  1858,  and  is  a 
member  of  the  Episcopal  Church. 


I 

JAMES  A.  CULVEE. 

Mr.  Culver  was  born  on  the  16th  of  September,  1814, 
in  Oneida  county,  N.  Y.  When  only  two  or  three 
years  of  age,  his  parents  removed  to  Stephentown, 
Kensselaer  county,  and  soon  afterwards,  to  the  town 
of  Berlin,  in  which  he  has  always  since  resided.  His 
father,  William  Culver,  was  born  in  Rhode  Island  on 
the  26th  of  July,  1774  ; came,  when  a young  man,  to 
the  State  of  New  York,  and  married  Catharine  Jones, 
in  December,  1801,  who  was  born  in  Stephentown,  on 
the  31st  of  December,  1780.  William  Culver,  the 
father  of  James,  died  about  twelve  years  ago,  and 
Catharine  Culver,  his  mother,  is  still  living  in  Illinois, 
in  the  eightieth  year  of  her  age.  His  maternal  grand- 
father served  in  the  militia  during  most  of  the  time  of 
the  Revolutionary  war,  and  was  at  the  battle  of  Ben- 
nington. He  was  subsequently  a major  of  militia,  and 
his  widow,  for  many  years,  received  a pension  on  ac- 
count of  his  military  services. 


180 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Mr.  Culver  received  only  a common-school  educa- 
tion. For  many  years  he  has  been  engaged  in  keeping 
a public  house,  and  has  now,  in  addition  thereto,  a store. 
In  1840  he  was  appointed  post-master,  under  General 
Harrison,  but  was  soon  after  removed  by  President 
Tyler.  He  was  also  in  the  same  year,  appointed  Depu- 
ty Sheriff,  and  held  the  office  under  the  two  succeeding 
sheriffs.  In  1845  he  was  elected  Supervisor  of  his  town, 
and  was  chosen  Assessor  in  1856.  From  the  time  he 
became  a voter  he  belonged  to  the  Whig  party,  till  its 
dissolution,  when  he  joined  the  Kepublican  party.  He 
was  married  to  Miss  Louisa  A.  Brown,  in  December, 
1842,  and  attends  the  church  of  the  denomination 
called  Christians.  He  is  a quiet,  unassuming  man,  but 
possesses  a strong  native  vigor  of  mind  and  body,  and 
is  honest  and  conscientious  in  the  fulfillment  of  his 
legislative  duties. 


JAMES  DARCY. 

Mr.  Darcy  was  born  in  the  city  of  Buffalo,  on  the 
12th  of  November,  1834,  and  is  a descendant  of  pure 
Irish  stock.  His  father,  Daniel  Darcy,  a prominent 
and  influential  man,  is  still  living  in  that  city,  and 
his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Eliza  Devenport, 
died  in  1848,  at  the  age  of  thirty-two. 

Mr.  Darcy  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of  his 
native  city,  and  after  removing,  in  January,  1851,  to 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


181 


the  city  of  Brooklyn,  where  he  now  resides,  served  his 
time  as  a house-carpenter,  which  has  always  since 
been  his  chief  occupation.  He  was  elected  to  the 
Assembly,  which  is  the  first  public  position  he  ever  held, 
by  a majority  of  upwards  of  six  hundred,  over  the  com- 
bined American  and  Republican  parties  in  his  district, 
and  has  shown  himself  an  honest,  capable,  indus- 
trious, and  intelligent  representative.  He  has,  like  his 
father,  always  been  a Democrat  of  the  old-fashioned, 
conservative  stamp,  and  has  never  faltered  in  his  de- 
votion to  the  real  interests  and  policy  of  that  party. 

Mr.  Darcy  is  still  single.  He  is  a young  man  of 
more  than  ordinary  promise  ; has  a fine,  prepossessing 
personal  appearance  ; and  enjoys  a high  degree  of 
personal,  as  well  as  political  popularity,  wherever  he 
is  known. 


ABRAM  W.  decker; 

Mr.  Decker  is  a native  of  Sussex  county.  New  Jer- 
sey, and  is  nearly  forty  years  of  age.  He  is  descended 
from  a conglomeration  of  English,  Irish,  German,  and 
Knickerbocker  Dutch  stock,  and  received  only  such  an 
education  as  is  afforded  a boy  on  the  canals  of  our 
State. 

Mr.  Decker  came  to  New  York  in  1830,  and  located 
in  the  town  of  Lumberland,  Sullivan  county,  where 
he  now  resides,  and  where  he  has  since  been 
chiefly  engaged  as  a carpenter,  mason,  school- 


182 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


teacher,  and  farmer.  He  has  held  the  office  of  Town 
Superintendent  of  Common  Schools,  and  Supervisor, 
and  was  elected  to  his  present  position  by  over  five 
hundred  majority.  His  most  distinguished  perform- 
ance, since  the  opening  of  the  Legislature,  was  his 
recent  speech  on  the  Pro-Rata  bill.  He  rose  like 
a rocket,  hissing  and  plunging,  clutching  at  the  air 
with  his  brawny  hands,  and  brushing  up  his  bushy 
crop  of  iron-gray  hair,  till  he  assumed  the  aspect  of  a 
porcupine.  He  smote  his  desk  with  his  huge  paws 
(giving  ^^paws’^  for  a reply,  whenever  interrogated), 
as  a black-smith  smites  the  iron  upon  his  anvil,  and  as 
if  conjuring  up  his  ideas  from  the  hidden  recesses  of 
his  table.  He  was  the  very  personification  of  old 
Mephistophiles,  with  his  stubby  hair  and  repulsive 
whiskers,  and  unsightless  eyes,  and  going  down  like 
a stick,  soon  cut  from  the  chamber.  He  professed 
Con-Rata,  but  wound  up  Pro-Rata. 

Mr.  Decker  is  fin  India-rubber  politician,  and  has  a 
conscience  of  the  most  flexible  consistency.  If  one 
position  does  not  suit  him,  he  quickly  finds  another — 
a perfect  wooden  callabus,  with  one  foot  upon  the 
Canals,  and  the  other  on  the  Central  Railroad.  He  is 
like  the  old  lady  who  found  no  fault  with  those  who 
could  not  understand  her  arguments  ; because  she 
could  not  understand  them  herself.  He  is  evidently 
in  need  of  the  care  of  his  friends,  and  should  be 
attended  to,  at  once. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


183 


WELLS  S.  DICKINSON. 

Mr.  Dickinson  is  a native  of  Bangor,  Franklin  county, 
N.  Y.,  where  he  still  resides,  and  was  born  in  the  year 
182T.  He  is  of  genuine  American  descent,  and  both 
his  parents,  Joshua  Dickinson  and  Adaline  Sargeant, 
are  still  living,  tlie  former  having  attained  the  age  of 
sixty-two,  and  the  latter  fifty-seven.  Mr.  Dickinson 
spent  some  time  in  a common  district  school,  and  sub- 
sequently passed  two  years  at  the  Franklin  Academy, 
in  his  native  county.  He  then,  in  1846,  engaged  in 
the  mercantile  trade  with  his  father,  whom  he  joined 
as  a partner  in  1850,  and  whose  interest  in  the  estab- 
lishment he  purchased  in  1853.  Mr.  0.  A.  Patterson 
then  became  his  partner,  the  co-partnership  thus 
established  existing  until  1855,  when  he  also  took 
Charles  Whitney  into  the  establishment,  and  did  busi- 
ness under  the  firm  name  of  Patterson,  Whitney  & Co., 
until  185T,  when  his  brother  took  the  place  of  Mr. 
Whitney  in  the  concern.  During  all  this  time,  how- 
ever, Mr.  Dickinson  devoted  his  time  chiefly  to  his 
own  private  business — the  manufacture  of  potato 
starch,  and  speculating  in  starch-hops,  &c.  He  is 
now,  also,  owner  and  proprietor  of  an  extensive  grist- 
mill and  saw-mill,  besides  being  interested  as  a part- 
ner in  a banking  establishment,  at  Red  Wing,  Min- 
nesota, under  the  firm  of  Smith,  Meigs  & Co. 

Mr.  Dickinson  held  the  position  of  Supervisor  of  his 
native  town  during  the  three  successive  years  of  1857, 


184 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


^58,  and  ^59,  and  was  appointed  by  the  Legislature  of 
1859,  as  one  of  the  Commissioners  to  whom  was  in- 
trusted the  settlement  of  the  claim  and  damages  aris- 
ing on  contract  between  the  State  and  J.  D.  Kings- 
land,  relative  to  convict  labor.  In  politics,  he  was 
formerly  a Whig,  but  is  now  an  active  and  thorough- 
going Republican.  He  was  marrie^in  1851,  to  Miss 
Thusa  Fish,  and  attends  the  Congregational  Church. 
He  is  a gentleman  of  ability  and  fine  social  qualities, 
and  is  highly  respected  wherever  he  is  known. 


PETER  DORSCH. 

Mr.  Dorsch  is  a native  of  the  village  of  Schoharie, 
Schoharie  county,  N.  Y.  He  was  born  on  the  9th  of 
January,  1815,  and  is  of  German  and  Dutch  descent. 
His  father,  George  Dorsch,  is  still  living  in  Schoharie 
county,  at  an  advanced  age,  as  is,  also,  his  mother, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Christina  Lawyer. 

Mr.  Dorsch  was  brought  up  on  a farm,  and  received 
a common-school  education  in  his  native  place.  When 
about  seventeen  years  of  age,  he  went  to  the  house- 
carpenter  trade,  and  after  serving  his  apprenticeship, 
removed  to  the  city  of  Schenectady,  where  he  has 
always  since  resided.  He  subsequently  became 
Assistant  Superintendent  on  the  Utica  & Schenectady 
Railroad,  retaining  the  position  after  the  consolidation 
of  the  Central  Road,  and  remained  so  engaged,  until 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


185 


some  three  years  ago,  since  which  time  he  has  been 
retired  from  business.  He  has  held  the  office  of 
Alderman,  some  two  years,  and  was  a member  of  the 
Board  of  Supervisors,  during  the  year  1859.  He  was 
originally  a Democrat,  but  is  now  a member  of  the 
Eepublican  party,  and  was  elected  to  his  present 
position,  by  an  unusually  large  majority.  He  is  a 
gentleman  of  much  more  than  ordinary  intelligence 
and  sound  practical  ability,  and  is  by  far  the  most 
substantial  and  capable  representative  that  Schenec- 
tady county  has  had  in  the  lower  branch  of  the 
Legislature  for  many  years.  He  is  one  of  the  most 
generous  and  enterprising  citizens  of  the  city  of 
Schenectady,  having  always  been  prominent  in  what- 
ever is  calculated  to  jiromote  her  prosperity  and 
success,  and  enjoys  a high  degree  of  personal  popular- 
ity wherever  he  is  known. 


EDWIN  H.  DOWNS. 

Mr.  Downs  is  a native  of  Colchester,  Delaware 
county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  forty-eight  years  of  age.  He 
sprung  from  pure,  unadulterated  English  stock,  and  is 
the  successor,  in  the  Assembly,  of  the  Hon.  Isaac  D. 
Mekeel,  one  of  the  most  sociable  and  popular  men  at 
the  capital  last  winter.  His  occupation  is  that  of  a 
miller  and  grain  dealer,  in  which  he  is  driving  a small 
business,  near  Havana,  Schuyler  county,  N.  Y.,  where 


186 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


he  now  resides.  He  belongs  to  the  Republican  party, 
and  was  chosen  a member  of  the  House  by  less  than 
one  hundred  majority.  His  business  capacity  is  fair  ; 
but  he  is  not  a brilliant  star,  and  will,  perhaps,  never 
shed  much  light  on  the  legislative  history  of  the 
Empire  State. 

Mr.  Downs  is  strongly  in  favor  of  the  location  of 
the  county-seat  of  Schuyler  county  at  Havana,  and  is 
mainly  devoted  to  that  one  object.  He  possesses  but 
little  independence  and  self-reliance,  either  as  an  indi- 
vidual or  legislator,  and  sneezes  violently  whenever 
ex-Canal  Commissioner,  Charles  Clark,  takes  snuft’ — a 
gentleman  of  whom  he  is  a perfect  walking  shadow. 
He  is  seldom  or  never  in  his  seat  during  the  sessions 
of  the  House,  and  is  usually  hanging  about  the  lobby, 
as  if  for  no  other  purpose  than  to  be  “ button-holed^^  by 
some  of  the  sovereigns.  His  constituents  had  better 
take  him  under  the  shed.’’ 


JEREMIAH  W.  DWIGHT. 

Mr.  Dwight  was  born  about  the  year  1820,  at  Cin- 
cinnatus,  Cortland  county,  N.  Y.,  being  only  about 
forty  years  of  age.  He  is  of  English  descent.  His 
father,  Elijah  Dwight,  is  still  living,  as  is  also  his 
mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Olive  Standish. 

Mr.  Dwight  attended  a village  high  school  for  a 
time,  but  was  chiefly  educated  in  an  ordinary  district 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


187 


school.  When  about  the  age  of  eighteen,  he  entered 
a dry-goods  store  as  a clerk,  and  was  employed  in 
that  capacity  some  four  or  five  years,  when  he  en- 
gaged-in the  mercantile  trade  on  his  own  responsi- 
bility. He  has  always,  since  then,  been  successfully 
engaged  in  that  business,  and  has  also  dealt  consider- 
ably in  real  estate.  He  was  elected  Supervisor  of  the 
town  of  Dryden,  where  he  resides,  in  1857  ; was  re- 
elected in  1858,  and  was  unanimously  chosen  Chair- 
man of  the  Board  during  both  years.  He  was  always 
a Freesoil  Democrat,  until  the  establishment  of  the 
Kepublican  party,  and  has  always,  since  then,  been 
an  active  supporter  of  the  principles  and  policy  of  that 
organization.  He  is  a gentleman  of  capacity,  shrewd- 
ness, and  energy,  and  is  governed  in  all  his  public  and 
private  acts  by  a sense  of  justice,  and  a strict  regard 
for  the  interests  of  the  whole  State.  His  sound  sense 
and  good  judgment  seldom  mislead  him  as  to  the 
merits  of  any  question,  and  no  one  is  more  faithful 
and  industrious  in  the  discharge  of  their  representa- 
tive duties. 

Mr.  Dwight  was  married,  in  1846,  to  Miss  Rebecca 
A.,  daughter  of  the  Hon.  Elias  W,  Cady,  and  attends 
the  Presbyterian  Church. 


188 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


DAVID  EAELL. 

Mr.  Earll  is  the  son  of  Peter  Earll,  who  now  resides 
in  Michigan,  and  is  a distant  relative  of  Nehemiah 
Earll,  who  once  represented  the  Onondaga  district  in 
Congress,  and  of  Jonas  Earll,  who  has  been  well  and 
favorably  known  as  Canal  Commissioner  of  this  State. 
He  is  of  English  and  Dutch  descent,  and  was  born  in 
1819,  in  the  town  of  Lysander,  Onondaga  county,  N.  Y. 
He  received  a common-school  education,  and  hav- 
ing studied  medicine  from  the  age  of  twenty  until 
twenty-two,  he  followed  that  profession  some  nine 
years,  when  he  abandoned  it,  and  was  elected  a Jus- 
tice of  the  Peace,  which  office  he  held  eight  years. 
He  has  also  occupied  various  other  town  offices,  includ- 
ing that  of  Supervisor,  and  Coroner,  and  was  elected 
to  the  last  Legislature  by  a majority  of  nearly  three 
hundred,  where  he  was  an  influential  ^member  of  the 
standing  Committees  on  Engrossed  Bills,  and  Two- 
third  and  Three-fifth  Bills.  He  was  always  a Democrat 
till  1856,  when  he  became  a Republican,  and  is  person- 
ally and  politically  one  of  the  most  popular  men  in  the 
county  of  Tioga,  where  he  now  resides.  Mr.  Earll  is 
now  engaged  in  lumbering  and  farming  ; was  married  - 
in  1845  to  Miss  Louisa  F.  Ransom  ; and  entertains 
liberal  religious  views,  confining  himself  to  no  par- 
ticular denomination.  He  is  very  quiet  and  unpre- 
tending in  his  legislative  career,  but  is  justly  regarded 
at  Albany  as  one  of  the  most  substantial  and  clear- 
headed men  in  the  present  Legislature. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


189 


JUDIAH  ELLSWORTH. 

Mr.  Ellsworth  is  doubtless  one  of  the  most  indus- 
trious, though  not,  perhaps,  the  most  gifted  men  in 
the  House.  He  is,  to  a great  extent,  a type  man  of 
his  class — thin,  wiry,  though  not  very  clear-headed, 
with  a light  coat  of  gray  hair,  hollow  and  haggard 
cheeks,  light-colored  eyes,  and  a sharp,  gimlet-pattern 
nose,  which  is  constantly  and  persistently  thrusting 
itself  into  all  improper  subjects.  He  cannot  be 
regarded  as  an  extraordinary  man  ; neither  as  pos- 
sessing any  of  the  qualities  of  such  distinction ; but 
he  is  laborious,  somewhat  cultivated,  and  a perfect 
intellectual  wasp,  treasuring  up  bitterness  for  months, 
and  having  the  faculty  to  make  the  most  studied  efforts 
appear  the  free,  fierce  fiashes  struck  out  in  an  im- 
promptu debate. 

Mr.  Ellsworth  is  a native  of  Bennington  county, 
Vermont,  and  is  of  Welsh  and  English  descent.  He 
is  sixty  years  of  age,  and  is  now  a practising  lawyer 
at  Saratoga  Springs,  where  he  resides.  He  was  for- 
merly a Democrat  of  the  more  conservative  school,  and 
is  one  of  the  very  few  Kepublicans  in  the  House  who 
recently  voted  against  the  proposed  amendment  to 
the  Constitution,  giving  negroes  equal  rights  with 
the  white  man  at  the  ballot-box.  He  never  held  any 
prominent  public  position  until  his  election  to  the 
present  House,  and  is  a gentleman  of  some  personal 
and  political  popularity  in  the  county  of  which  he  is 
a resident. 


190 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


JEREMIAH  EMERICK. 

Mr.  Emerick  is  sixty-one  years  of  age.  He  was 
born  in  Ghent,  Columbia  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  of 
German  and  Holland  extraction.  He  is  now  residing 
in  Baldwinsville,  Onondaga  county,  and  was  chosen 
a member  of  the  present  House,  by  nearly  eight  hund- 
red majority.  In  politics,  he  is  a bitter  Republican,  of 
the  strictest  sect,  and  is  brim-full  of  all  manner  of 
horrible  apprehensions,  lest  the  slaveholding  States 
may  have  the  privilege  of  disposing  of  their  own 
domestic  affairs,  in  their  own  way.  He  is  a gentleman 
of  some  ability,  occupying  a respectable  position  in 
the  community  in  which  he  resides,  but  is  not  par- 
ticularly remarkable  in  any  thing,  and  will,  in  all 
probability,  be  no  better  off,  in  point  of  reputation,  as 
to  his  legislative  ability,  at  the  end  of  the  present 
session  of  the  Legislature,  than  he  was  at  the  begin- 
ning. 


THOMAS  EVANS. 

Mr.  Evans  is  a native  of  England,  and  was  born  on 
the  1st  of  August,  1801.  He  is  the  youngest  son  of 
George  and  Mary  E.  Evans,  who  emigrated  to  America 
in  1802,  and  some  three  years  afterwards,  settled  in 
Peterboro’,  Madison  county,  N.  Y.  His  father  died  in 
that  place  in  October,  1814,  at  the  age  of  fifty-five, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


191 


as  did,  also,  his  mother,  in  April,  1823,  at  the  advanced 
age  of  sixty-five. 

Mr.  Evans  was  educated  in  the  common  schools  of 
Madison  county,  and  after  devoting  some  time  to 
black-smithing  and  farming,  became  a merchant,  in 
which  occupation  he  is  still  engaged.  He  was  elected 
Justice  of  the  Peace,  in  Florence,  Oneida  county,  N.  Y., 
where  he  now  resides,  in  the  fall  of  1828,  and  with 
the  exception  of  one  term,  in  1826,  he  held  the  office 
during  a period  of  twenty-four  years.  He  'was  an 
anti-Mason  in  1835,  and  subsequently  an  Abolitionist, 
but  at  the  formation  of  the  Republican  party,  became 
a member  of  that  organization,  believing  it  quite 
comprehensive  enough  in  its  general  principles  and 
policy,  to  satisfy  all  his  anti-slavery  views.  He  was 
married  in  1829,  to  Miss  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Deacon 
John  Bayley,  of  England,  who  emigrated  to  America, 
in  1828,  and  usually  attends  the  Methodist  Church. 

Mr.  Evans  was  elected  to  the  Assembly  by  nearly 
three  hundred  majority,  and  discharges  his  legislative 
duties  honestly,  faithfully,  and  to  the  best  of  his 
ability. 


MARTIN  FINCH. 

Mr.  Finch  is,  both  personally  and  politically,  one  of 
the  most  quiet,  useful,  and  popular  men  in  either  branch 
of  the  Legislature.  He  is  a gentleman  of  superior 
ability  and  intelligence,  and  occupies  a deservedly 


192 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


high  position,  in  both  public  and  private  life,  through- 
out the  entire  section  of  the  State  where  he  resides. 
He  comes  to  the  Assembly  by  the  handsome  majority 
of  over  one  thousand,  and  has  already  proven  himself 
an  honest,  efficient,  and  capable  representative — one 
upon  whom  a corrupt  and  unscrupulous  lobby  can 
scarcely  hope  to  make  the  slightest  impression. 

Mr.  Finch  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Jay,  Essex 
county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  was  born  on  the  21st  of  June, 
1811.  He  is  of  English  and  Irish  descent.  Both  his 
father  and  mother  died  at  Black  Brook,  Clinton  county, 
N.Y.,  the  former  on  the  8th  of  Oct.,  1854,  at  the  age  of 
seventy-nine,  and  the  latter  about  the  year  1848,  at  the 
age  of  about  sixty-five.  He  received  a classical  edu- 
cation, being  a graduate  of  Williams  College,  Mass., 
and  having  studied  law,  was  duly  admitted  to  the 
bar  in  1842.  Since  then  he  has  had  quite  an  exten- 
sive and  lucrative  practice,  at  Keesville,  Essex  county, 
where  he  resides,  and  has  succeeded,  by  his  legal  skill 
and  ability,  in  acquiring  considerable  reputation  in 
his  profession.  He  has  always  \)een  strongly  averse 
to  occupying  any  political  position,  but  besides  hold- 
ing some  unimportant  town  offices,  has,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  two  years,  been  Supervisor  of  his  town,  since 
1841,  and  still  occupies  that  position.  He  was  for- 
merly an  old  line,  Henry  Clay  Whig,  and  adhered 
firmly  to  that  party,  until  its  dissolution  in  1854,  when 
his  conservative  nationality  on  all  the  great  questions 
of  the  day,  at  once  led  him  into  the  ranks  of  the  Amer- 
ican organization,  where  he  still  occupies  a firm,  con- 
sistent, and  unyielding  position. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


193 


Mr.  Finch  was  married  in  1843,  to  Miss  Caroline 
Jackson,  a native  of  Chesterfield,  Essex  county,  N.Y., 
and  belongs  to  the  Congregational  Church. 


GEORGE  H.  FISHER. 

Mr.  Fisher  was  born  on  the  tth  of  May,  1832,  at  Os- 
wego, Oswego  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is,  therefore,  one  of 
the  youngest  men  in  the  House.  He  is  of  English  de- 
scent, and  his  paternal  ancestors,  who  settled  in  Frank- 
lin, Mass.,  came  from  England  as  early  as  1636.  His 
father,  George  Fisher,  who  has  been  living  in  the  city  of 
New  York  during  the  past  two  years,  settled  in  Oswego 
county,  in  1816,  shortly  after  it  became  a county,  and 
was  for  many  years  one  of  the  most  successful  lawyers 
in  that  section  of  the  State.  His  mother,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Elizabeth  P.  Huntington,  is  still  living,  at 
about  the  age  of  fifty-five. 

Mr.  Fisher  was  educated  at  Harvard  University, 
where  he  graduated  in  1852,  with  one  of  the  first  honors 
of  his  class.  After  leaving  college,  he  entered  the  law 
office  of  Johnson  & Sessions,  at  Syracuse,  where  he 
pursued  his  legal  studies  until  1854,  when  he  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar  at  Utica.  He  subsequently  passed 
some  time  at  the  law  school,  at  Cambridge,  and  in 
1855  opened  an  office  in  the  city  of  New  York.  Since 
then  he  has  been  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession in  that  city  and  Brooklyn,  and  has  been  re- 


194 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


siding*  in  the  latter  place.  He  has  held  the  oflBce  of 
Notary  Public,  but  never  occupied  any  prominent 
public  position  until  his  election  to  the  present  Assem- 
bly from  a Democratic  district.  He  took  but  little  in- 
terest in  politics  until  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Com- 
promise, when  he  was  among  the  first  to  enlist  in  the 
organization  of  the  Republican  party.  Since  then  he 
has  been  an  active  and  consistent  supporter  of  the 
principles  and  measures  of  that  party,  and  was  two 
years  a member  of  the  Republican  General  Committee 
of  Kings  county.  He  is  a young  gentleman  of  superior 
qualities,  both  of  head  and  of  heart,  and  is  quiet  and 
unpretending,  though  faithful  and  industrious  in  the 
discharge  of  his  legislative  duties. 

Mr.  Fisher  is  married,  and  attends  the  Universalist 
Church. 


THOMAS  T.  FLAGLER. 

In  the  history  and  career  of  Mr.  Flagler  is  presented 
another  illustration  of  the  rewards  in  store  for  patient 
industry  and  perseverance  against  the  frowns  of  for- 
tune and  the  adv^ersity  of  life.  Deprived  of  the  ad- 
vantages of  an  early  education,  even  in  the  ordinary 
branches  of  English  literature,  he  was  thrown  upon 
the  world  penniless,  and  without  favored  friends.  But 
his  industrious  habits,  and  a well-earned  character  for 
strict  integrity  and  morality,  overcame  these  obstacles, 
and  he  is  now,  in  the  prime  of  life,  the  possessor  of  a 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


195 


moderate  fortune  and  honorable  distinction  from  the 
creditable  discharge  of  functions  pertaining  to  high 
official  trusts. 

Mr.  Flagler  was  born  on  the  12th  of  October,  1811, 
in  the  town  of  Pleasant  Valley,  Dutchess  county, 
N.  Y.  His  paternal  grand-father  came  from  Holland, 
and  his  mother,  who  is  still  living,  is  of  English  de- 
scent. His  father,  Abraham  Flagler,  died  in  1852,  at 
the  advanced  age  of  eighty-three.  He  received  only 
a common-school  education,  and  learned  the  printer's 
trade  in  the  office  of  the  Chenango  Bepuhlican,  at  Oxford, 
N.  Y.  By  the  death  of  his  employer,  Daniel  Mack, 
his  apprenticeship  terminated,  and  at  the  age  of  only 
about  eighteen  years,  he  purchased  the  establishment, 
and  began  business  on  his  own  responsibility.  He 
then  continued  the  publication  of  the  Repuhlicany  in 
connection  with  a business  partner,  W.  E.  Chapman, 
for  about  six  years,  when  he  relinquished  his  interest 
to  his  partner,  and  removed  to  Lockport,  Niagara 
county,  N.  Y.,  where,  in  September,  1838,  he  purchased 
and  assumed  the  editorial  management  of  the  Niagara 
Courier j one  of  the  pioneer  newspapers  of  Western 
New  York.  During  his  connection  with  this  paper, 
it  was  the  Whig  organ  of  that  county,  and  he  con- 
tinued its  editor  and  publisher  from  1838  till  1843. 
Meanwhile  he  was  elected  to  the  Assembly  of  1842 
and  ’43,  serving  as  chairman  of  the  Standing  Commit- 
tee on  Grievances,  during  the  former  session,  and  re- 
presenting his  party  on  the  Canal  Committee  during 
the  latter  session.  Relinquishing  the  publication  of 


196 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


the  Courier,  he  soon  afterwards  formed  a mercantile 
copartnership,  in  which  he  still  retains  an  interest^ 
although  for  several  years  the  chief  care  of  the  estab- 
lishment has  devolved  upon  partners.  He  was  chosen 
County  Clerk  in  1848,  holding  the  oflSce  three  years, 
and,  in  1852,  was  elected  to  Congress  from  the  Niagara 
and  Orleans  district,  and  took  part  in  the  protracted 
struggle  against  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise, 
in  the  Thirty-third  Congress.  He  was  re-elected  to  Con- 
gress in  1854,  receiving  the  entire  vote  of  his  district, 
with  the  exception  of  some  two  thousand,  and  was  also 
a participant  in  the  long  and  exciting  struggle  for 
Speaker,  which  resulted  in  the  election  of  Mr.  Banks. 
He,  at  first,  declined  the  nomination  for  the  position  he 
now  occupies  in  the  Assembly,  but  was  finally  pre- 
vailed upon  to  stand  the  canvass,  which  resulted  in 
his  election. 

Mr.  Flagler  is  the  head  of  a family,  and  has  long  been 
a member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  He  is  empha- 
tically an  active  man,  participating  in  every  measure 
that  has  a tendency  to  advance  religion  and  morality, 
and  his  hand  and  purse  are  ever  open  to  aid  in  the 
promotion  of  interests  bearing  upon  the  growth  and 
prosperity  of  the  village  in  which  he  resides. 


SAMUEL  L.  FULLER. 

Mr.  Fuller  is  a lineal  descendant  of  the  Pilgrim 
Fathers,  and  was  born  in  1818,  in  Geneseo,  Livingston 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


19t 


county,  N.  Y.  His  mother  came  from  Connecticut,  and 
his  father,  the  Hon.  P.  0.  Fuller,  who  died  in  1854,  was 
a native  of  Berkshire  county.  Mass.  He  occupied,  con- 
secutively, a position  in  the  Assembly,  State  Senate, 
and  lower  branch  of  Congress,  and  in  1836,  resigned 
his  seat  in  the  latter  body,  and  removed  to  Adrian, 
Michigan,  where  he  was  Speaker  of  the  Assembly,  in 
1839,  and  the  Whig  candidate  for  Governor,  in  1840. 
He  was,  also,  Assistant-Postmaster-General,  under  the 
Hon.  Francis  Granger,  and  after  his  return  to  Living- 
ston county,  became  Comptroller,  in  1851,  to  fill  a 
vacancy  for  one  year. 

Mr.  Fuller  received  an  academical  education,  and 
was  engaged  in  engineering  and  surveying  in  Michi- 
gan till  1840,  when  he  returned  to  Livingston  county, 
where  he  was  an  agent  upon  the  estate  of  the  Hon.  C. 
H.  Carroll,  till  1844.  He  then  married  Arthuretta  S. 
Van  Vechten,  a native  of  Albany,  and  commenced 
farming  in  Conesus,  Livingston  county,  where  he 
remained  till  1854.  He  then  moved  into  Seneca 
county,  where  he  continued  farming  until  1856,  when 
he  returned  to  the  town  of  ^onesus,  his  present  place 
of  residence.  He  has  been  an  eminently  successful 
farmer,  and  was  absent  from  the  country,  in  Europe, 
in  1853,  some  three  months,  by  authority  of  the  Liv- 
ingston County  Cattle  and  Importing  Society.  He 
was  a member  of  the  Assembly,  in  1859,  where  he 
served  with  some  success,  as  chairman  of  the  stand- 
ing Committee  on  Agriculture,  and  was  re-elected  at 
the  last  election,  by  a majority  of  over  eight  hundred. 


198 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


He  is  an  industrious  man  ; is  not  a radical  politician, 
though  closely  attached  to  the  principles  of  the  Ee- 
puhlican  party,  and  is  a member  of  the  Episcopal 
Church. 


JOHN  FULTON. 

Mr.  Fulton  was  born  in  the  city  of  Albany,  and  is 
forty-five  years  of  age.  He  is  of  pure  Irish  extrac- 
tion, and  received  a good,  substantial,  business  edu- 
cation. He  is  now  a merchant,  at  Waterford,  Sara- 
toga county,  where  he  resides,  and  sustains  the 
reputation,  wherever  he  is  known,  of  an  honest,  indus- 
trious, and  successful  business  man.  In  politics,  he 
has  always  been  a Democrat  of  the  “ Old  Hickory  ” 
stamp,  and  was  chosen  to  his  present  position  in  the 
House,  from  a strong  Eepublican  district,  by  a ma- 
jority of  more  than  six  hundred  over  the  combined 
Opposition.  He  possesses  a good,  practical  mind,  and 
in  most  matters  with  which  he  has  any  thing  to  do, 
reaches,  almost  by  intuition,  conclusions  which,  with 
the  generality  of  men,  are  onl}^  arrived  at  by  laborious 
study.  He  appears  to  understand  and  appreciate  per- 
fectly, the  wants  and  best  interests  of  his  constituents, 
and,  although  one  of  the  most  quiet  and  unassuming 
gentlemen  in  the  House,  is  prompt  and  independent  in 
the  discharge  of  all  his  ofiScial  duties. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


199 


KICHAKD  J.  GAERETTSON. 

Mr.  Garrettson  was  born  in  1835,  in  Ehinebeck, 
Dutchess  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  has  always  resided 
with  his  father,  the  Hon.  Freeborn  Garrettson,  at  his 
beautiful  country-seat  on  the  banks  of  the  Hudson.  He 
is  of  English  descent.  His  parents  came  from  Mary- 
land, and  his  father,  who  has  occupied  various  places 
of  public  distinction,  has  now  attained  the  sixty-sixth 
year  of  his  age,  while  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name 
was  Elizabeth  Waters,  is  fifty-four  years  of  age. 

Mr.  Garrettson  has  a wide  circle  of  distinguished 
relatives,  among  whom  may  be  mentioned  the  late  ex- 
President  Polk,  ex-Governor  Wise,  of  Virginia,  Judge 
Upsher,  and  the  Rev.  Freeborn  Garrettson,  one  of  the 
most  eminent  Methodist  divines  in  the  country.  He 
was  educated  in  Liverpool,  England,  and  received  a 
liberal  English  education.  He  was  employed  for  some 
time  with  his  father  in  agricultural  pursuits,  but  is 
now  successfully  engaged,  as  an  agent,  in  the  real  es- 
tate and  insurance  business.  He  has  always  been  a 
Democrat  of  the  old  school,  recognizing  no  distinction 
of  shells  in  his  political  faith,  and  has  been  quite  a 
zealous  politician  in  his  own  and  the  adjoining  towns 
in  his  native  county.  He  was  elected  to  his  present 
position  by  a flattering  majority  in  a strong  Republican 
district,  over  an  opponent  of  considerable  personal 
popularity,  and  has  shown  himself  well  qualified  to 
fulfill  the  duties  of  a representative.  He  is  a young 


200 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


man  of  fine  business  capacity,  as  well  as  legislative 
tact  and  ability,  and  is  one  of  the  most  fiuent  and 
eloquent  speakers  on  the  floor  of  the  House.  With 
these  qualities  he  combines,  in  a high  degree,  a genial, 
good-natured  disposition  and  temperament,  and  enjoys 
far  more  than  an  ordinary  amount  of  personal  popu- 
larity. 

Mr.  Garrettson  is  still  single,  and  is  a member  of 
the  Episcopal  Church. 


SAMUEL  W.  GIBBS. 

Mr.  Gibbs  is  a native  of  Litchfield,  Connecticut, 
where  he  was  born  on  the  23d  of  June,  1811.  He  is 
descended  from  genuine  Yankee  ancestry.  He  re- 
moved with  his  parents  to  New  York  in  1815,  and 
located  at  East  Bloomfield.  His  father,  Erastus  Gibbs, 
who  was  also  a native  of  Litchfield,  died  at  Canan- 
daigua, Ontario  county,  N.  Y.,  in  the  spring  of  1826, 
at  about  the  age  of  fifty-five,  and  his  mother,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Susan  Goodwin,  died  at  the  same 
place,  in  1845,  at  the  advanced  age  of  sixty-five. 

Mr.  Gibbs  was  educated  in  the  common  schools  of 
Bloomfield  and  Canandaigua,  and  during  the  first  two 
years  after  leaving  home,  was  a clerk  in  the  dry- 
goods  store  of  Lewis  Jenkins,  at  Canandaigua,  who 
was,  at  that  time,  post-master  at  that  place.  He  sub- 
sequently learned  the  cabinet-making  trade,  and  is 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


201 


now  engaged  in  the  business  of  stove-pattern  making, 
at  No.  9 Liberty  street,  in  the  city  of  Albany.  He 
held  the  position  of  Alderman,  in  the  Third  Ward  of 
that  city,  from  183Y  to  ^39,  and  was  triumphantly 
elected  to  the  seat  he  now  occupies  in  the  Assembly, 
by  a flattering  plurality.  In  politics,  he  was  formerly 
a Whig,  until  1842,  when  he  became  a Democrat,  and 
has  always  since  then  been  one  of  the  most  active  and 
unyielding  supporters  of  the  principles  and  policy  of 
that  party.  He  came  to  the  city  of  Albany  in  August, 
1833,  and  has  always  since  been  one  of  her  most  enter- 
prising and  influential  citizens.  His  reputation,  wher- 
ever he  is  known,  is  that  of  an  industrious  and  suc- 
cessful business  man  ; a shrewd,  calculating  politi- 
cian ; and  a kind,  generous,  and  hospitable  gentle- 
man ; and  there  is,  perhaps,  no  one  in  the  present  Le- 
gislature, more  attentive  and  efiicient  in  the  discharge 
of  their  legislative  duties  than  himself. 

Mr.  Gibbs  was  married  on  the  24th  of  December, 
1833,  to  Miss  Harriet  Hinkley,  and  attends  the  Uni- 
versalist  Church — that  of  the  Eev.  A.  D.  Mayo. 


WILLIAM  C.  GOVER. 

Mr.  Gover  was  born  in  1818,  in  the  city  of  Philadel- 
phia, and  when  about  nine  years  of  age,  removed  with 
his  parents  to  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he  has 
always  since  resided.  His  father,  George  Willoughby 
9* 


202 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Augustus  Gover,  who  was  stationed  at  Fort  Hamil- 
ton, Long  Island,  during  the  war  of  1812,  was  a native 
of  London,  England,  and  his  mother  was  born  in  the 
city  of  Baltimore. 

At  the  age  of  fourteen,  Mr.  Gover  was  left  alone, 
by  the  death  of  his  father,  with  his  mother  and  two 
younger  children,  their  entire  dependence  thus  de- 
volving upon  him,  and  from  that  time  to  this  he  has 
never  been  idle,  and  has  met  with  the  most  gratifying 
success.  His  means  of  education,  under  the  circum- 
stances in  which  he  was  placed  at  so  young  an  age, 
were  necessarily  very  limited  ; but  nevertheless,  by 
industry,  integrity,  and  perseverance,  he  has  become 
one  of  the  most  intelligent  and  reliable  men  in  the 
neighborhood  where  he  resides.  ^ 

Mr.  Gover  was  a Sergeant  of  Police  previous  to  the 
3d  July,  1851,  when,  as  he  claims,  he  was  fraudulently 
dismissed  from  the  position  by  the  Board  of  Police 
Commissioners,  and  he  is  now  engaged  in  litho- 
graphic printing.  He  has  always  been  a Democrat 
of  the  Hard  Shell,  Jeffersonian  school,  wielding  con- 
siderable influence  among  the  better  class  of  New 
York  politicians;  and  was  a prominent  and  influential 
member  of  the  Assembly,  in  1859,  both  on  the  floor  of 
the  House,  and  as  a member  of  the  standing  Com- 
mittees on  Engrossed  Bills  and  Public  Printing.  He 
was  again  brought  forward,  at  the  late  election,  by 
the  Democrats  of  his  district,  and  was  triumphantly 
elected  by  the  largest  majority  given  to  any  candi- 
didate,  for  the  Assembly,  in  the  State.  He  is  a gentle- 


BIOGKAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


203 


man  of  far  more  than  ordinary  ability,  possessing  a 
mind  peculiarly  metaphysical,  and  is  one  of  the  most 
intelligent,  ready,  and  fluent  members  of  the  present 
Legislature. 

At  the  age  of  twenty-eight,  Mr.  Gover  married  Miss 
Caroline  Cropsey,  a lady  of  superior  female  excel- 
lence, who  is  now  dead,  and  by  whom  he  has  two 
interesting  daughters.  He  was  again  married  in 
1859,  to  Miss  Emeline  Renode,  of  New  York  City,  a 
lady  of  excellent  qualities,  and  many  rare  female 
attractions,  and  usually  attends  the  Universalist 
Church,  occupying  personally,  as  well  as  politically, 
the  position  of  one  of  the  most  popular  men  in  his 
district. 


DANIEL  GRAY. 

Mr.  Gray  was  born  on  the  7th  of  August,  1813,  in 
the  then  town  of  Bath,  now  the  town  of  Wheeler,  Steu- 
ben county,  N.Y.  He  is  of  English  descent.  His  father, 
Levi  Gray,  an  honest  and  industrious  farmer,  is  still 
living,  at  about  the  age  of  seventy,  and  his  mother, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Tryphena  Baker,  is  also  still 
living,  at  nearly  the  same  age.  His  father  came  from 
Fairfield  county,  Ct.,  and  his  mother  is  a native  of 
Steuben  county,  N.  Y.  His  maternal  grand-father, 
Samuel  Baker,  was  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  that 
county. 

Mr.  Gray  was  educated  in  the  common  schools  of  his 


204 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


native  place,  with  the  exception  of  some  six  months, 
which  he  passed  at  an  academy.  He  was  brought 
up  on  his  father^s  farm,  and  after  teaching  a few  years, 
engaged  in  farming  on  his  own  responsibility,  and  has 
always  since  made  that  and  surveying  his  chief  occu- 
pation. He  is  now  living  on  a portion  of  the  same 
farm  on  which  he  was  born,  and  has  always  been  quite 
successful  in  all  his  agricultural  pursuits.  He  has 
held  the  office  of  Justice  of  the  Peace  seven  years,  and 
that  of  Supervisor  two  years,  besides  other  minor 
town  offices,  and  was  chosen  to  his  present  position 
by  a complimentary  vote.  He  was  formerly  a Whig, 
and  is  now  a Republican,  having  been  among  the  first 
to  enlist  in  the  latter  movement.  As  a politician,  he 
is  active  and  industrious,  and  wields  considerable 
influence  in  the  local  politics  of  his  own  and  adjoining 
towns. 

Mr.  Gray  was  married,  in  1835,  to  Miss  Lydia  Myr- 
tle, and  generally  attends  the  Methodist  Church. 


JOHN  C.  HALL. 


Mr.  Hall  is  one  of  the  noticeable  characters  in 
the  House,  being  rather  tall  and  substantially  built, 
with  features  strongly  marked  and  distinct,  a cast- 
iron  countenance,  a heavy  growth  of  disordered  brown 
hair,  which  stands  erect  like  the  quills  of  a fretful  por- 
cupine, and  has  altogether  the  general  appearance  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


205 


a man  very  much  after  the  fashion  of  old  General 
Jackson. 

Mr.  Hall  was  born  in  Dutchess  county,  N.  Y.,  and 
is  fifty-two  years  of  age.  He  is  descended  from  Eng- 
lish and  Irish  parentage,  and  received  a good  business 
education.  He  is  now  engaged  in  farming  at  Covert, 
Seneca  county,  where  he  resides,  and  sustains  a fair 
reputation  wherever  he  is  known,  as  a man  of  honesty, 
integrity,  and  great  energy  of  character.  Politically, 
he  is  a strong  and  unyielding  Democrat,  of  the  old-fash- 
ioned school,  making  no  distinction  as  to  shells^  and 
was  chosen  to  his  seat  in  the  House,  by  about  one 
hundred  majority,  from  a district  hitherto  Republican. 
Unaccustomed,  like  farmers  generally,  to  the  routine 
of  legislative  life,  he  is  somewhat  awkward  on  the 
floor  of  the  House,  but  he  is  doubtless  possessed  of 
sound,  practical  sense,  and  an  honest  desire  to  sub- 
serve, to  the  very  best  of  his  ability,  the  constituency 
by  whom  he  has  been  clothed  with  his  present  prom- 
inent (?)  distinction. 


WILLIAM  HARRIS. 

Mr.  Harris  is  one  of  the  most  substantial  and  well- 
meaning  men  in  either  branch  of  the  Legislature. 
There  is  nothing  brilliantly  striking  in  his  composi- 
tion, but  he  possesses  what  is  far  more  valuable  and 
essential  in  the  discharge  of  legislative  duties — sound, 
practical  judgment,  undoubted  integrity  of  purpose, 


206  \ BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 

and  the  moral  courage  to  talk  and  act  as  he  thinks 
and  feels. 

Mr.  Harris  is  a native  of  Wiltshire,  England,  and 
was  born  in  1805.  He  came  to  the  United  States  in 
1840,  and  settled  in  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he 
has  always  since  been  chiefly  engaged  in  the  sugar- 
refining business.  He  never  held  any  public  office 
until  his  election  to  the  present  Assembly,  but  dis- 
charges his  duties  in  a manner  that  cannot  fail  to 
secure  the  unqualified  approbation  of  his  constituents. 
He  was  a staunch  and  unyielding  member  of  the  Lib- 
eral party  before  coming  to  this  country,  and  since 
here  has  been  uncompromisingly  attached  to  the  prin- 
ciples and  measures  of  the  Democratic  party.  He  has 
never,  however,  been  much  of  a politician,  preferring 
to  devote  himself  exclusively  to  the  management  of 
his  own  private  affairs,  and  reluctantly  accepted  the 
nomination  of  his  party  for  the  position  he  now  occu- 
pies. 

Mr.  Harris  is  a man  of  family,  and  enjoys  a high 
degree  of  personal  popularity  wherever  he  is  known. 


mVING  HOLCOMB. 

Mr.  Holcomb  was  born  on  the  21st  of  June,  1833,  in 
Litchfield,  Herkimer  county,  N.  Y.,  on  the  same  farm 
on  which  he  is  now  living.  His  paternal  grand-father, 
Salah  Holcomb,  who  went  into  Herkimer  county,  as 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


20T 


early  as  1791,  and  who  was  one  of  the  earliest  settlers 
of  the  town  of  Litchfield,  was  a man  of  great  natural 
ability  and  industry,  and  was  highly  respected  and 
esteemed  throughout  his  life-time.  His  father,  Albeen 
Holcomb,  died  in  1838,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Elizabeth  Thomas,  is  still  living. 

Mr.  Holcomb  attended  school  at  various  academies, 
receiving  a good  education,  and  was  for  some  time  a 
student  at  Prof.  Turner^s  French  Boarding-school,  in 
the  city  of  Utica.  He  has  always  been  an  enterpris- 
ing and  successful  farmer,  and  until  his  election  to  the 
present  Legislature,  never  held  any  prominent  public 
position.  In  politics,  he  was  formerly  a Whig,  and 
after  the  dissolution  of  that  party,  identified  himself 
with  the  Republican  movement,  of  which  he  has  always 
since  been  a devoted  and  active  member.  As  a poli- 
tician, he  is  frank,  honest,  and  decided  ; as  a man, 
straight-forward,  industrious,  and  reliable  ; and  as  a 
legislator,  upright,  intelligent,  and  attentive  in  the 
discharge  of  every  duty  devolving  upon  him. 

Mr.  Holcomb  was  married  on  the  21st  of  December, 
1853,  to  Miss  S.  M.  Hull,  and  is  a firm  believer  in  the 
Christian  religion,  although  belonging  to  no  church. 
He  is  quite  agreeable  in  the  social  circle,  and  is  highly 
esteemed  for  his  personal  qualities,  wherever  he  is 
known. 


208 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


GEORGE  G.  HOSKINS. 

Mr.  Hoskins  was  born  in  the  town  of  Benning’ton, 
Wyoming  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  now  resides,  and  is 
the  first  member  of  the  Legislature  ever  elected  from 
Wyoming,  who  was  born  and  reared  within  the  town 
of  Bennington.  He  is  thirty-five  years  of  age.  His 
parents,  both  of  whom  are  still  living,  removed  to 
Wyoming  county,  from  Bloomfield,  Hartford  county, 
Connecticut,  about  the  year  1808,  and  have  been  living 
upon  the  same  farm  in  that  county  for  upwards  of  a 
half  century. 

Mr.  Hoskins  received  a thorough,  practical  acade- 
mical education,  and  during  the  past  eleven  years  has 
been  industriously  and  successfully  engaged  in  the 
mercantile  trade.  At  the  age  of  twenty-three,  he  was 
elected  Town  Clerk  of  the  place  where  he  resides, 
holding  the  office  some  three  years,  and  in  1853  was 
elected  a Justice  of  the  Peace,  which  position  he  still 
occupies.  He  was  also  post-master  during  the  admin- 
istrations of  Gen.  Taylor  and  Mr.  Fillmore,  and  in 
every  position  to  which  he  was  called,  discharged  his 
duties  honestly,  faithfully,  and  to  the  best  of  his  abil- 
ity. He  was  formerly  a Whig,  firmly  adhering  to  the 
fortunes  of  that  gallant  old  party  as  long  as  it  retained 
its  organization,  and  is  now  an  active  and  thorough- 
going Republican. 

At  the  age  of  twenty-two,  Mr.  Hoskins  was  married 
to  Miss  Lois  A.  Hallenbeck,  and  generally  attends 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


209 


the  Baptist  Church.  He  is  a gentleman  of  superior 
personal  appearance,  being,  at  least,  six  feet  in  his 
stockings,  with  square  shoulders,  an  erect  and  ele- 
gantly-formed body,  light  brown  hair  and  whiskers, 
clear  blue  eyes,  and  a long,  thin,  expressive  face,  de- 
noting more  than  ordinary  intelligence  and  ability. 
He  is  sociable  and  agreeable,  kind-hearted  and  gen- 
erous, ambitious  of  the  right  in  contradistinction  to 
wrong  ; and  industrious  and  conscientious  in  the  dis- 
charge of  his  duties  as  a citizen  and  legislator. 


RICHARDSON  T.  HOUGH. 

Mr.  Hough  was  born  on  the  15th  of  July,  1806,  in 
the  town  of  Thurman,  now  Warrensburgh,  Warren 
county,  N.  Y.  His  father,  William  Hough,  who  was 
a native  of  Connecticut,  died  on  the  29th  of  August, 
1855,  in  West  Leyden,  Lewis  county,  N.  Y.,  at  the 
advanced  age  of  eighty-seven,  and  his  mother,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Eunice  Skiff,  and  who  was  born  in 
Massachusetts,  died  in  Queensborough,  Warren  coun- 
ty, on  the  5th  of  November,  1848,  in  the  seventy- 
fourth  year  of  her  age. 

Mr.  Hough  received  a common  English  education 
in  his  native  town,  and  in  1825  located  in  Oneida 
county,  about  three  quarters  of  a mile  from  where  he 
now  resides.  He  then,  in  1840,  removed  to  his  pre- 
sent place  of  residence,  and  has  always  since  been 


210 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


chiefly  engaged  in  farming  and  lumbering,  and  specu- 
lating in  wild  lands.  In  1839,  he  was  elected  a Jus- 
tice of  the  Peace,  in  Boonville,  Oneida  county,  which 
office  he  held  until  his  removal  from  that  county  the 
next  year,  and  held  the  office  of  post-master  at  West 
Leyden,  Lewis  county,  from  1845  until  about  the  year 

1854,  with  the  exception  of  some  six  months.  He  was, 
also.  Marshal  of  the  town  of  Lewis  during  the  year 

1855.  He  was  always  a Whig  until  the  organization 
of  the  Kepublican  party,  since  which  time  he  has 
been  a Eepublican,  of  liberal,  though  decided  and  un- 
compromising views  on  the  subject  of  slavery.  He 
was  elected  to  his  present  position  in  the  Assembly 
by  a flattering  majority,  and  makes  a prompt,  indus- 
trious, and  capable  representative. 

Mr.  Hough  was  married  on  the  10th  of  April,  1829, 
to  Miss  Chloe  Warner,  of  Clinton,  Oneida  county, 
N.  Y.,  and  is  a member  of  the  Baptist  Church. 


GAYLORD  B.  HUBBELL. 

Mr.  Hubbell  is  one  of  those  enterprising,  intelligent, 
thorough-going,  self-made  men,  of  whom  our  country 
may  very  well  feel  proud.  He  was  a member  of  the 
Assembly  in  1859,  and  was  of  one  of  the  most  substan- 
tial, influential,  and  useful  men  in  that  body,  serving 
with  much  more  than  ordinary  distinction,  both  on  the 
floor  of  the  House  and  as  Chairman  of  the  Standing 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


211 


Committee  on  Charitable  and  Religious  Societies,  and 
as  a member  of  the  Committee  on  State  Prisons.  He 
was  re-elected,  at  the  last  election,  by  a compliment- 
ary majority,  and  again  ranks  high  among  his  legisla- 
tive compeers,  as  a gentleman  of  character  and  com- 
manding influence  and  ability. 

Mr.  Hubbell  was  born  on  the  24th  of  December,  1812, 
in  the  town  of  Coeymans,  Albany  county,  N.  Y.  He 
is  of  English  and  Scotch  descent,  and  his  paternal 
grand-father,  Shadrick  Hubbell,  served  as  a captain 
during  the  Revolution.  Amos  Hubbell,  his  father,  who 
was  a native  of  New  Milford,  Ct.,  died  at  Coxsackie,  in 
this  State,  when  he  was  only  about  nine  years  of  age, 
leaving  him  and  his  mother,  with  eight  daughters,  en- 
tirely upon  their  own  resources  for  a support.  After  his 
father^s  death,  he  was  obliged  to  obtain  a living  in  vari- 
ous ways,  until  he  had  attained  his  fifteenth  year,  when 
he  was  apprenticed  to  the  tin-smithing  business.  At 
the  age  of  nineteen,  he  removed  to  Catskill,  Greene 
county,  where  he  completed  his  trade,  receiving,  in 
the  mean  time,  only  a very  ordinary  English  education, 
and  at  the  age  of  twenty-two,  removed  to  Peekskill, 
Westchester  county.  He  was  then  engaged,  from  1836 
till  about  the  year  1855,  in  the  jobbing  hardware  busi- 
ness, in  Sing  Sing  and  the  city  of  New  York,  and  is 
now  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  files  at  Sing  Sing, 
where  he  resides.  In  politics,  he  was  formerly  a 
Whig,  but  was  one  among  the  first  to  engage  in  the 
Republican  movement,  at  the  organization  of  that 
party. 


212 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Mr.  Hubbell  was  married,  in  1837,  to  Miss  Harriet 
Auser,  and  has  belonged  to  the  Presbyterian  Church 
upwards  of  twenty  years.  He  stands  deservedly  high 
in  the  community  in  which  he  resides,  and  exercises  a 
strong  moral  influence  throughout  all  the  private  and 
social  relations  of  life. 


PELATIAH  JAKWAY. 

Mr.  Jakway  is  a native  of  Port  Ann,  Washington 
county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  now  resides,  and  is  forty  years 
of  age.  He  is  of  English  and  Scotch  descent.  The 
educational'  advantages  of  his  youth  were  only  such 
as  were  afforded  by  the  common  schools  of  the  country, 
and  he  is  now  engaged  in  the  practice  of  the  law,  in 
which  he  is  said  to  have  been  thus  far  only  tolerably 
successful.  He  is  a gentleman  of  some  personal  popu- 
larity, having  been  elected  to  his  present  position  by 
over  eight  hundred  majority,  and  is  the  successor  in 
the  House  of  the  Hon.  James  M.  Northup,  one  of  the 
most  whole-souled  and  straight-forward  men  in  the 
last  Legislature.  He  possesses  moderate  abilities, 
and  some  legislative  qualities,  but  will  never  make 
Rome  howl  or  set  Goose  creek  on  fire  with  admiration. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SRfil'CHES* 


218 


DAVID  K.  JAQUES. 

Mr.  Jaques  was  born  on  the  20th  of  April,  1823,  at 
Blazing  Star,  Middlesex  county.  New  Jersey.  He  is 
of  English  descent.  His  father,  David  R.  Jaqnes,  who 
was  a successful  merchant  in  the  city  of  New  York 
from  1812  until  1822,  died  many  years  ago,  and  his 
mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Catharine  Shotwell, 
is  still  living,  at  the  good  old  age  of  seventy-six.  His 
paternal  grand-father  was  a Colonel  of  the  Jersey  Blues 
in  the  Revolution,  and  took  part  in  some  of  its  most 
desperate  struggles,  among  which  were  Monmouth 
and  Springfield. 

Mr.  J aques  has  always,  chiefly,  resided  in  the  city  of 
New  York,  where  he  has  mostly  been  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  the  law.  He  graduated  at  Harvard  College 
in  1842  ; studied  two  years  at  the  Dane  Law  School, 
Cambridge,  Mass.,  with  Judge  Story  and  Prof.  Green- 
leaf,  where  he  took  the  degree  of  LL.B.  in  1844,  and 
has  acquired  considerable  reputation  in  his  profession. 
He  is  now  a Notary  Public  in  New  York,  but,  aside 
from  having  been  a clerk  in  the  Surrogate's  office  under 
the  administration  of  Mr.  Bradford,  has  never  held  any 
prominent  public  position  until  his  election  to  the 
present  House.  He  has  never,  in  politics,  been  any 
thing  but  a Whig  and  a Republican.  He  is  one  of  the 
most  promising  and  clever  young  men  in  the  House, 
and  is  efficient  and  industrious  in  the  discharge  of 
every  duty  devolving  upon  him. 

Mr.  Jaques  is  still  single,  and  attends  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Bellows’  church. 


214 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES^ 


THOMAS  J.  JEFFOEDS. 

Mr.  Jeffords  was  born  on  the  2d  of  April,  1812,  in 
the  town  of  Bush,  Monroe  county,  N.  Y.  His  ances- 
tors came  from  England,  and  settled  in  Massachusetts. 
His  father,  Joseph  Jeffords,  who  died  on  the  4th  of 
March,  1850,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one,  came  from 
Otsego  county,  and  settled  in  Bush  in  1805,  about  ten 
miles  south  of  where  the  city  of  Rochester  now  stands. 
His  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Susanna  Morris^ 
a relative  of  Robert  Morris,  died  in  that  town  on  the 
12th  of  October,  1857,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one.  His 
parents  were  married  in  1792,  by  Judge  Cooper,  of 
Otsego  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  the  seventh  son,  and  his 
brothers  emigrated  to  Ohio  and  Michigan  in  1832. 

Mr.  Jeffords^  educational  advantages  were  confined, 
chiefly,  to  the  common  schools  of  his  native  town. 
He  was  educated  for  the  mercantile  trade,  which  he 
followed  some  eight  years,  and  then  began  the  prac- 
tice of  the  law,  in  which  he  is  still  successfully 
engaged.  He  has  held  various  town  offices  since  1835, 
and  is  now  a member  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors,  in 
Monroe  county.  He  was,  also.  Deputy  Sheriff  of  that 
county  from  1837  until  1840,  and  was  always  honest  and 
faithful  in  the  discharge  of  his  official  duties.  In 
politics,  he  was  formerly  an  old-line  Henry  Clay  Whig, 
until  1855,  when  he  joined  the  American  party,  and  is 
now  a supporter  of  the  cause  of  Republicanism.  He 
was  married  on  the  30th  of  August,  1840,  to  Miss 
Elizabeth  A.,  daughter  of  Amos  Horton,  formerly  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


215 


Clinton,  Dutchess  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  a member  of 
the  First  .Christian  Church  of  North  Bush,  Monroe 
county,  N.  Y. 

Mr.  Jeffords  is  a quiet,  unassuming  man,  but  possesses 
superior  business  qualifications,  and  makes  an  exceh 
lent  representative.  He  ranks  high  as  a man  and  a 
citizen,  in  the  community  iii  which  he  resides,  and 
enjoys  much  more  than  ordinary  personal,  as  well  as 
political  popularity,  wherever  he  is  known. 


PHILANDER  R.  JENNINGS. 

Mr.  Jennings  was  born  on  the  12th  of  February, 
1814,  at  Sag  Harbor,  Suffolk  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  of 
English  descent.  His  father,  Hezekiah  Jennings, 
died  on  the  25th  of  March,  1840,  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
seven,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Eachel 
Smith,  died  in  April,  1850,  at  the  advanced  age  of 
sixty-six. 

Mr.  Jennings  received  a common-school  education 
in  his  native  county,  and  until  recently  was  engaged 
in  the  manufacturing  and  mercantile  trade.  He  is 
now  a pension  agent  and  accountant,  and  is  a 
gentleman  of  superior  business  qualifications.  In 
1849,  he  was  elected  a Justice  of  the  Peace,  and  has 
been  twice  re-elected  to  the  same  position.  He  had, 
however,  for  several  years  previous  to  1839,  held  the 
oflSce  of  Second  and  First  Lieutenant  in  the  Thirteenth 


216 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES, 


Regiment,  He  then  went  to  Texas,  where  he  re- 
mained until  February,  1841,  when  he  was  appointed 
one  of  the  deputy  surveyors,  to  lay  olf  and  sectionize 
the  Cherokee  lands,  by  Charles  Schoolfield,  Surveyor 
GeneraL  On  his  return  from  Texas,  he  was  elected 
Captain  in  the  Thirteenth  Regiment  of  N,  Y.  State 
Artillery,  and  occupied  that  position  until  the  tth  of 
September,  1844.  He  was,  subsequently,  appointed 
Lieutenant-Colonel  in  the  Sixteenth  Regiment,  and  in 
1853  was  chosen  Colonel  of  the  same  Regiment,  and 
still  occupies  that  ofiSce.  He  also  held  the  office  of 
Justice  of  the  Sessions,  during  three  successive  years, 
from  1851,  and  in  1859  was  a Deputy  Clerk  in  the 
Assembly.  He  is  now  a Notary  Public,  having  been 
first  appointed  to  that  office,  in  185Y,  by  Gov.  King, 
and  re-appointed  in  1859,  by  Gov.  Morgan.  In  politics, 
he  was  formerly  a Whig,  adhering  firmly  to  that  party 
as  long  as  it  retained  its  organization,  and  is  now  a 
Republican. 

Mr.  Jennings  was  married  on  the  21st  of  July,  1849, 
to  Miss  Lucy  L.,  daughter  of  Ezra  and  Lorinda 
Gladwin,  of  Saybrook,  Connecticut,  and  attends  the 
Presbyterian  Church.  He  is  a gentleman  of  superior 
personal,  as  well  as  political  popularity,  and  has 
proven  himself  a capable  representative. 


BlOGRAfMlCAL  SKETCHI^S. 


21? 


HUMPHREY  JEWELL. 

Mr.  Jewell  was  born  in  Durham,  Greene  county,  N.Y., 
and  is  about  fifty  years  of  age.  He  was  left  father- 
less and  motherless  when  a mere  child,  and  was  taken 
charge  of  by  a family  who  shortly  afterwards  removed 
to  Canada.  After  remaining  there  a few  years,  a gen- 
tleman of  Durham  went  after  him,  and,  bringing  him 
back,  adopted  him. 

Mr.  Jewell  received  a common  English  education, 
and,  arriving  at  manhood,  received  a small  start  from^ 
his  guardian-father,  and  settled  about  six  miles  west 
of  Kingston,  in  the  town  of  Hurley,  Ulster  county, 
N.  Y.,  a point  then  comparatively  a mere  wilderness. 
Here,  by  his  industry  and  good  business  tact,  he  has 
acquired  a competency,  and  built  up  a small  village 
around  him,  which  bears  his  name.  His  business  is, 
and  has  been,  farming  and  lumbering.  In  politics,  he 
was  formerly  an  old-line  Henry  Clay  Whig,  and  when 
the  American  organization  sprung  into  existence,  was 
one  of  its  earliest  supporters.  He  still  claims  to 
adhere  to  the  principles  of  that  party,  and  sustains 
the  reputation  of  a conservative  man  on  all  the  great 
questions  of  a State  or  National  character.  On  the 
slavery  question,  he  is  willing  to  grant  the  South  just 
what  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  guarantees 
to  them,  and  nothing  more.  He  was  chosen  to  his 
present  position  by  the  joint  efibrts  of  the  Americans 
and  Republicans  in  his  district  ; hut  since  the  opening 
10 


218 


BtOGllAPHiCAL  SKETCHES. 


of  the  present  session  of  the  Legislature,  has  steadily 
acted  with  the  latter. 

Mr.  Jewell  was  married,  some  years  since,  to  Miss 
Laura,  daughter  of  Calvin  Bayliss,  of  Greene  county, 
N.  Y.  She  is  a lady  of  superior  qualities,  and  he 
is  much  indebted  to  her  prudence,  good  sense,  and 
general  industry,  for  his  present  position  as  a man  of 
property. 


MOSES  C.  JEWETT. 

Mr.  Jewett  was  born  on  the  15th  of  February,  1815, 
in  the  town  of  West  Windsor,  Windsor  county,  Ver- 
mont. He  sprung  from  Puritanical  stock,  and  his 
ancestors  were  among  the  early  settlers  of  New  Eng- 
land. His  paternal  grand-father,  John  Jewett,  emi- 
grated, at  an  early  day,  from  Concord,  New  Hampshire, 
to  the  town  of  Stonsted,  Canada  East,  where  he 
brought  up  a large  family  of  sons  and  daughters.  In 
1813,  his  father,  John  Jewett,  left  the  paternal  roof, 
and  located  in  West  Windsor,  where  he  married  Miss 
Hannah  Currier,  who  was  left  a widow,  on  the  5th 
of  May,  1829,  with  nine  children,  of  whom  the  subject 
of  this  sketch  was  the  oldest.  She  died  in  May,  1859, 
at  the  old  family  residence,  in  the  seventy-second  year 
of  her  age. 

Mr.  Jewett  received  the  rudiments  of  an  English 
education,  in  the  district  schools  of  his  native  place, 
and  removed  to  the  State  of  New  York,  in  1846,  locat- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


219 


ing  in  the  town  of  Alexandria,  Jefferson  county,  where 
he  has  since  resided.  Since  his  coming  to  this  State, 
he  has  been  engaged  in  farming,  and  previous  to  that 
time,  in  teaching,  and  various  other  employments. 
He  never  occupied  any  public  position  outside  of  his 
own  county,  until  his  election  to  the  present  Legisla- 
ture, but  is  in  every  respect  well  qualified  to  fill 
properly  almost  any  representative  position.  In  poli- 
tics, he  was  formerly  an  active  Whig,  and  at  the  dis- 
solution of  that  party,  joined  the  Republicans. 

Mr.  Jewett  was  married  on  the  4th  of  December, 
1843,  to  Miss  Mary  Ann,  daughter  of  John  Wakefield, 
of  his  native  place  ; and  confines  himself  to  no  par- 
ticular church,  in  his  attendance  upon  religious  wor- 
ship. He  is  a kind,  hospitable,  and  benevolent  gen- 
tleman, and  stands  well  in  the  community  in  which  he 
resides.  Although  thrown  upon  the  world  at  an  early 
age,  without  the  aid  of  wealth  or  influential  friends, 
he  has,  by  his  industry  and  perseverance,  met  with 
the  most  gratifying  success. 


WILLIAM  C.  JONES, 

Mr.  Jones  is  a native  of  the  city  of  New  York.  He 
was  born  on  the  19th  of  October,  1822.  He  is  of  Eng- 
lish extraction,  and  sprung  from  old  Revolutionary 
stock.  His  father,  John  Jones,  a native  of  Philadel- 
phia, who  served  in  the  war  of  1812,  with  some  dis- 
tinction, lived  in  the  Seventh  Ward,  in  the  city  of  New 


220 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHED. 


York,  until  his  death  in  1830,  and  was  an  intimate 
friend  of  Mayor  Westervelt.  His  mother,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Sarah  Tripp,  is  still  living,  at  the 
age  of  sixty-one. 

Mr.  Jones  was  educated  at  the  Chrestomatic  Insti- 
tute, under  the  tuition  of  Patrick  Sarsfield  Oaserly. 
After  leaving  school,  he  passed  four  years  as  a clerk  in 
a store,  and  then  engaged  in  the  granite  business.  This 
was  then  his  chief  employment,  until  about  five  years 
since,  when,  through  the  influence  of  the  Hon.  George 
Taylor  and  other  prominent  friends,  he  was  employed 
by  the  General  Government,  in  the  Navy  Department, 
at  Brooklyn.  Some  six  years  previous  to  this,  how- 
ever, he  removed  to  that  city,  where  he  has  always 
since  been  a resident.  He  has  always  since  occupied 
a place  in  that  Department  of  the  Government,  and  re- 
signed the  position  of  Superintendent  of  the  Erection 
of  Marine  Barracks,  to  take  his  seat  in  the  present 
Legislature.  During  his  term  of  service,  in  this 
capacity,  he  discharged  his  duties  honestly  and  effi- 
ciently, and  always  enjoyed  the  entire  confidence  of 
Secretary  Toucy,  Commodore  Joseph  Smith,  and  Com- 
modore Samuel  Breese,  present  commanding  officer. 
In  politics,  he  has  always  adhered  firmly  to  the 
Democratic  party,  which,  in  his  judgment,  is  the  only 
true  party  of  the  country,  in  these  days  of  sectional- 
ism and  extreme  fanaticism. 

Mr.  Jones  was  married  on  his  birth-day,  in  1848, 
to  Miss  Susan  J.  Green,  who  died  about  a year  ago, 
and  who  was  a grand-daughter  of  the  late  Eev.  Zack- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


221 


ariali  Green,  of  Hempstead,  Long  Island,  a Revolu- 
tionary soldier.  He  usually  attends  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  of  which  his  wife  was  a member ; 
and  although  quiet  and  reserved  in  his  general  de- 
portment, is  a gentleman  of  superior  personal  popular- 
ity. He  was  presiding  officer  of  Lexington  Lodge, 
310,  in  Brooklyn,  for  three  years,  and  is  well  and 
favorably  known  throughout  the  State,  as  a member 
of  the  Masonic  order. 


BAKNA  R.  JOHNSON. 

Mr.  Johnson  took  his  seat  in  the  present  Assembly, 
on  the  14th  of  February,  1860,  as  the  successor  of  the 
Hon.  Donald  D.  Shaw,  who  died  soon  after  his  elec- 
tion. He  was  born  in  the  town  of  Colchester,  Dela- 
ware county,  N.  Y.,  in  1825.  He  is  of  Irish  and 
Dutch  descent.  Some  of  his  paternal  ancestors  were 
prominent  in  the  Irish  rebellion  of  1198,  and  his 
maternal  grand-father  was  an  active  soldier  in  the 
American  army  during  the  Revolution.  His  father, 
Henry  Johnson,  died  in  Colchester,  in  1849,  at  the 
age  of  seventy-two,  and  his  mother  died  in  1858,  at 
the  age  of  seventy-four. 

^Ir.  Johnson  was  educated  at  the  Delaware  and 
Rhinebeck  Academies  ; pursued  his  legal  studies  in 
the  Law  School  at  Albany  ; and  is  now  successfully 
engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profession.  He  occu- 
pied the'  position  of  County  Superintendent  of  Com- 


222 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


mon  Schools  in  his  native  county,  when  only  twenty- 
one  years  of  age  ; has  been  Town  Superintendent  of 
Common  Schools  four  or  five  years  ; and  in  1857  was 
a member  of  the  Assembly,  where  he  held  an  influen- 
tial position  upon  the  Judiciary  Committee.  He  was 
again  a member  of  that  body  in  1859,  and  during  the 
session  of  that  year  was  again  a member  of  the  Judi- 
ciary Committee.  During  that  session,  he  also  made 
himself  somewhat  conspicuous  by  his  earnest  and 
successful  advocacy  of  the  bill,  making  the  stock-in- 
trade  and  earnings  of  married  women  exempt  from 
execution  for  the  husband’s  debts,  and  also  the  bill  to 
extend  the  exemption  of  household  furniture,  working- 
tools,  and  team,  from  sale,  under  execution.  His 
early  political  associations  were  with  the  Whig 
party,  but  since  the  organization  of  the  Eepublican 
movement,  he  has  been  a live  member  of  that  party. 
As  a lawyer,  he  has  already  gained  a high  rank  in  the 
section  of  State  in  which  he  resides,  enjoying  the  im- 
plicit confidence  of  all  his  clients,  and  is  known 
almost  everywhere  as  an  unyielding  friend  of  the 
Common  School  system  of  this  State.  In  private  as 
in  public  life,  he  stands  deservedly  high,  and  is  re- 
spected and  esteemed  by  all  who  know  him. 

Mr.  Johnson  was  married,  in  1857,  to  Miss  Julia 
Becker,  of  Schoharie  county,  and  attends  the  Presby 
terian  Church.  He  is,  doubtless,  one  of  the  most 
promising  young  men  in  the  House, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


223 


CHARLES  KELSEY. 

Mr.  Kelsey  is  a native  of  Poughkeepsie,  Dutchess 
county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  was  born  on  the  24th  of 
August,  1821.  He  is  of  English  and  Dutch  descent, 
his  great-grandfather,  on  his  fathePs  side,  having 
come  from  England,  and  his  maternal  great-grand- 
father having  come  from  Holland.  His  father,  James 
Kelsey,  who  is  a master-mechanic,  is  still  living  in 
the  city  of  Poughkeepsie,  at  the  age  of  seventy-four, 
and  his  mother  died  in  that  place  at  an  advanced 
age. 

Mr.  Kelsey  received  a common  English  education  in 
his  native  place.  He  learned  the  carpenter^s  trade 
with  his  father,  who  brought  all  his  boys  up  to  a 
trade,  and  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  left  Poughkeepsie,  and 
went  to  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  where  he  has  always 
since  resided,  with  the  exception  of  a short  time, 
which  he  passed  at  Charleston,  South  Carolina.  He 
was  engaged  as  a master-builder  in  Brooklyn  some 
six  years,  and  for  the  last  thirteen  years  has  been 
engaged  in  the  coal  business.  He  has  been  Collector 
of  Assessments  in  that  city  some  two  years  ; was 
Canal-boat  Inspector  about  the  same  length  of  time  ; 
and  held  the  office  of  Harbor-master  two  years,  under 
the  administration  of  Governor  Clark.  He  is,  at 
present,  a member  of  the  Board  of  Education,  and  a 
trustee  of  the  Brooklyn  Benevolent  Association,  which 
has  the  distribution  of  the  income  of  a large  estate 


224 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


to  the  poor  in  that  city.  He  was  always  a Whig  up 
to  the  time  of  the  dissolution  of  that  party,  when  he 
belonged,  for  a short  time,  to  the  Republican  party, 
and  then  became  a staunch  and  energetic  Democrat. 

Mr.  Kelsey  was  married,  in  1846,  to  Miss  E.  Pres- 
ton, a native  of  Albany,  and  is  a member  of  the  Strong 
Place  Baptist  Church,  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn. 


EGBERT  S.  KELSEY. 

Mr.  Kelsey  was  born  on  the  8th  of  October,  1821, 
in  Goshen,  Orange  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  of  English 
descent.  His  father,  Jeremiah  D.  Kelsey,  who  was 
born  in  1194,  died  on  the  4th  of  June,  1854,  and  his 
mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Jane  Hathaway,  a 
daughter  of  Daniel  Hathaway,  captain  of  a volunteer 
company,  stationed  on  Staten  Island  in  the  war  of 
1812,  is  still  living,  at  a good  old  age. 

Mr.  Kelsey  received  a limited  common-school  edu- 
cation, and  has  always  been  a successful,  practical 
mechanic,  now  engaged  in  the  tin  and  sheet  iron 
trade.  He  never  held  any  prominent  public  position 
until  he  became  a member  of  the  present  Assembly, 
but  has  shown  himself  every  way  qualified  to  discharge 
properly  and  satisfactorily  the  duties  of  a legislator. 
He  was  originally  a Whig,  of  the  Woolly-head  school, 
and  is  now  an  enthusiastic  Republican,  and  a genu- 
ine, thorough-going,  unadulterated  friend  of  Gov.  Sew- 
ard. He  is  a shrewd,  intelligent  politician  of  more 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


225 


than  ordinary  sagacity  and  executive  ability,  and 
enjoys  a high  degree  of  political,  as  well  as  personal 
popularity,  in  the  town  of  which  he  is  a resident. 

Mr.  Kelsey  was  married,' in  September,  1852,  to  Miss 
Lydia  L.,  daughter  of  George  W.  Allen,  who  is  a 
lineal  descendant  of  Ethan  Allen.  She  is  a woman 
of  rare  female  excellence,  and  is  highly  esteemed  by 
the  community  in  which  she  lives.  Mr.  Kelsey  at- 
tends the  Congregational  Church. 


JAMES  KENNEDY. 

Mr.  Kennedy  was  born  on  the  11th  of  August, 
1194,  in  the  town  of  Milton,  Saratoga  county,  N.  Y., 
and  is  now  sixty-six  years  of  age.  His  father, 
Thomas  Kennedy,  was  of  Scotch  and  Irish  descent, 
and  came  to  America  from  Ireland  just  previous  to 
the  breaking  out  of  the  Eevolutionary  struggle.  He 
participated  actively  in  the  war,  and  was,  at  one 
time,  captured  by  the  English  and  Indians  at  Ballston, 
while  under  Capt.  Gordon,  and  confined  upwards  of 
two  years  in  the  Montreal  prison.  His  wife,  the  mother 
of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Wood,  was  a native  of  Sharon,  Connecticut,  and  was 
a full-blooded  Yankee  woman.  Both  she  and  her  hus- 
band are  now  dead,  the  former  having  died  in  1844, 
and  the  latter,  in  1835. 

Mr.  Kennedy  received  a good  common-school  edu- 
cation, and  has  always  been  successfully  engaged  in 
10* 


226 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


farming.  He  has  held  all  the  various  town  oiBBces, 
from  Highway  Commissioner  to  Supervisor,  and  occu- 
pied the  latter  position  some  two  years.  He  has, 
also,  held  quite  a prominent  military  position  in  the 
county  in  which  he  resides,  having  filled,  successively, 
the  offices  of  Sergeant,  Captain,  Major,  Lieut.-Colonel, 
and  Colonel,  and  was  a soldier  in  the  war  of  1812.  He 
has  always  been  a Democrat.  He  is  a gentleman 
of  some  ability,  and  is  perfectly  honest  and  unsophis- 
ticated in  the  fulfillment  of  his  duties  as  a member  of 
the  House. 

Mr.  Kennedy  was  married  on  the  11th  of  Septem- 
ber, 1816,  to  Miss  Lucinda,  daughter  of  Ezra  Grin- 
nell,  of  Saratoga  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  a member  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church. 


JOHN  H.  KORTRIGHT. 

Mr.  Kortright  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Wawar- 
sing,  Ulster  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  was  born  in  Jan- 
uary, 1810.  He  is  of  Dutch  descent,  and  his  ancestors, 
some  of  whom  were  active  in  the  Kevolution,  were 
among  the  earliest  settlers  in  Ulster  county.  Henry 
Kortright,  his  father,  died  in  1826,  at  the  age  of  fifty, 
and  his  mother,  a native  of  Ulster  county,  whose  name, 
before  marriage,  was  Mary  Ousterhout,  died  in  1843, 
at  the  age  of  sixty-six. 

Mr.  Kortright  was  educated  in  the  common  schools 
of  his  native  place,  and,  during  the  past  twenty  years. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


221 


has  been  engaged  on  the  Delaware  and  Hudson  Canal, 
where,  during  the  past  ten  years,  he  has  occupied  the 
position  of  a collector.  He  has  held  numerous  town 
offices,  among  which  has  been  that  of  Justice  of  the 
Peace,  and  although  strongly  opposed  to  the  policy 
of  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise,  has  always 
been  a straight-forward,  consistent,  and  uncompro- 
mising Democrat  of  the  old-fashioned,  conservative 
school.  He  has  been  a somewhat  active  politician  in 
his  immediate  county,  but  has  never  been  ambitious 
of  political  preferment.  He  discharges  his  legislative 
duties  with  disinterested  ability,  and  a zealous  devo- 
tion to  the  best  intersts  of  his  constituents,  and  will 
doubtless  leave  a clean  and  unblemished  record  behind 
him,  at  the  end  of  his  official  career. 

Mr.  Kortright  is  a widower,  and  attends  the  Epis- 
copal Church. 


SAMUEL  A.  LAW. 

Mr.  Law  is  a native  of  Delaware  county,  N.  Y.  ; is 
thirty-eight  years  of  age,  and  resides  in  the  same  man- 
sion in  which  he  was  born.  He  passed  his  collegiate 
life  in  Hamilton  College  ; studied  law  with  the  Hon. 
A.  J.  Parker,  then  of  Delaware  county,  and  completed 
his  professional  studies  in  the  Law  department  of  Yale 
College.  In  1838,  he  accompanied  an  elder  brother, 
then  in  bad  health,  to  Southern  Georgia,  where,  sur- 
rounded by  the  ‘‘peculiar  institution,”  he  fully  in- 
formed himself  of  its  effects  upon  the  white  and  black 


228 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


races.  He  subsequently  took  a tour  through  the  sea- 
board slave  States,  which  confirmed  the  results  of  his 
previous  observation,  and  returned  home  a confirmed 
opponent,  under  constitutional  restrictions,  of  the  sys- 
tem of  American  slavery. 

In  1839,  Mr.  Law  commenced  the  practice  of  the  law, 
at  Erie,  Pa.,  where,  in  1841,  he  married  Miss  Kate  H., 
daughter  of  Samuel  Hays,  Esq.  Owing  to  the  declin- 
ing health  of  his  father,  he  abandoned  his  profession, 
in  1843,  and  returning  to  Delaware  county,  became, 
what  he  still  continues  to  be,  a practical  farmer.  He 
has  always  taken  a deep  interest  in  the  subject  of  agri- 
culture ; was  President  of  the  Delaware  County  Agri- 
cultural Society,  from  1850  to  1855;  has  frequently 
been  Clerk  of  his  native  town  ; has  been  an  acting 
Justice  of  the  Peace  during  the  past  five  years,  and 
was  a National  Whig  till  the  complete  disorganization 
of  that  party,  when  he  became  a zealous  American. 
He  was  elected  by  that  party  to  the  Assembly  of 
1858,  and  again  to  that  of  1859,  and  during  both  ses- 
sions was  the  acknowledged  leader  of  the  American 
party  in  the  House.  He  was  then  re-elected  to  the 
present  Assembly  by  a union  of  Americans  and  Kepub- 
licans,  and  at  the  opening  of  the  present  session,  took 
part  in  the  Kepublican  caucus,  in  support  of  the 
present  officers  of  the  House.  His  urbanity  and  uni- 
form gentlemanly  deportment  have  won  the  esteem  of 
his  associates  of  all  parties,  and  the  ability  he  has  dis- 
played in  his  legislative  career,  has  attracted  attention 
from  all  quarters  of  the  State.  He  introduced  the  now 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


229 


famous  ‘‘  Unclaimed  Deposit  Bill/’  in  1858,  and  sup- 
ported it  on  the  floor  of  the  House  in  a speech  of  sin- 
gular force  and  clearness. 

As  a speaker,  Mr.  Law  is  peculiar.  He  is  utterly 
devoid  of  ostentation.  He  never  “ puts  on  airs.”  His 
remarks  are  always  directly  to  the  point.  He  has  not 
the  unfortunate  habit  of  delivering  a dissertation  on 
every  subject,  and,  consequently,  when  he  arises,  he 
is  listened  to  with  attention.  He  is  remarkably  fluent, 
and  has  the  happy  faculty  of  expressing  his  ideas 
clearly,  forcibly,  and  in  the  fewest  words.  There  is 
always  a stampede  into  the  Assembly  chamber  from 
the  rotunda,  the  clerk’s  room,  and  the  lobby,  when  the 
word  goes  round:  Law  is  speaking.”  Aside  from 
his  excellent  qualities  as  a legislator,  he  has  within 
him  the  elements  of  personal  popularity.  There  is  no 
bitterness  in  his  composition.  He  is  genial,  social, 
companionable,  and  without  an  enemy. 


PETEE  McAETHUE. 

Mr.  McArthur  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Ancram, 
Columbia  county,  N.  Y.,  and  was  born  on  the  12th  of 
May,  1812.  He  is  of  genuine  Scotch  descent.  His 
father,  Charles  McArthur,  died  in  1821,  at  the  age  of 
forty-four,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Olodine  Poultney,  died  in  December,  1851,  at  about 
the  age  of  seventy.  His  paternal  grand-father  was 


230 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


a Revolutionary  soldier,  and  was  a man  of  usefulness 
and  distinction  in  his  life-time. 

Mr.  McArthur  was  educated  in  the  common  schools 
of  his  native  place,  and  was  brought  up  a farmer. 
When  about  the  age  of  eighteen,  he  removed  to 
Salisbury,  Connecticut,  where  he  was  engaged  some 
twenty-five  years  in  farming.  He  then  came  back  to 
his  native  town,  where  he  purchased  a farm,  and 
where  he  has  since  been  extensively  engaged  in 
farming,  besides  being  interested  in  the  iron-ore 
business  in  Connecticut.  He  held  the  office  of  Super- 
visor in  his  native  town,  in  1855,  and  comes  to  the 
present  Legislature  by  a flattering  majority.  He  was 
formerly  a staunch  Whig,  of  the  Henry  Clay  school, 
but  was  one  among  the  first  to  enlist  in  the  Repub- 
lican movement,  after  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri 
Compromise.  Until  recently,  he  has  never  taken  a very 
active  part  in  politics,  and  has  always  contented 
himself  with  being  simply  and  emphatically  a business 
man.  There  is  nothing  very  brilliant  or  striking  in 
his  general  composition,  but  he  possesses  what  is  far 
more  valuable  to  him,  as  a legislator — good  common- 
sense,  a sound,  discriminating  judgment,  and  the 
ability  and  disposition  to  perform  the  duties  of  his 
position,  honestly  and  conscientiously. 

Mr.  McArthur  was  married,  in  1838,  to  Miss  Mary 
M.  Keyes,  of  Salisbury,  Connecticut,  and  attends  the 
Methodist  Church. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


231 


HENEY  McFADDEN. 

Mr.  McFadden  is  a native  of  Argyle,  Washington 
county,  N.  Y.,  and  has  attained  the  age  of  sixty-one. 
He  has  simply  led  the  life  of  an  industrious  and  some- 
what obscure  farmer,  never  having  done  any  thing  to 
distinguish  himself  among  the  great  bulk  of  his  neigh- 
bors, and  on  becoming  a member  of  the  present 
Assembly,  made  his  first  appearance  in  public  life.  It 
remains  to  be  seen,  therefore,  with  what  success  he 
will  acquit  himself  in  the  discharge  of  the  legislative 
duties  with  which  the  good  people  of  Clinton  county 
have  intrusted  him.  Politically,  he  is  a member  of 
the  Republican  organization,  being  thoroughly  anti- 
slavery in  all  his  feelings  and  sentiments,  and,  like 
some  of  his  political  associates,  is  said  to  constantly 
labor  under  the  mistaken  impression  that  all  slave- 
holders are  no  better  than  a set  of  political  vampires, 
and  that,  in  the  language  of  Helpers  book,  “ it  is 
against  slavery  on  the  whole,  and  against  slaveholders 
as  a body,  that  the  North  should  wage  an  exterminat- 
ing war.” 


JAMES  McQUADE. 

“ Of  all  the  causes  which  conspire  to  blind 
Man’s  erring  judgment,  and  mislead  the  mind, 

What  the  weak  head  with  strongest  bias  rules, 

Is  Pride — that  never-failing  vice  of  fools.” 

Mr.  McQuade  was  born  in  Utica,  Oneida  county. 


232 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


N.  Y.,  where  he  has  always  resided,  and  is  thirty  years 
of  age.  He  is  descended  from  pure  Irish  stock,  and 
his  father  has  been  many  years  a successful  brewer  in 
that  city.  He  is  a strong  Republican,  of  the  John 
Brown  school ; but  until  his  election  to  the  present 
House,  was  never  particularly  known  in  the  political 
world,  outside  of  the  immediate  confines  of  his  own 
ward.  The  prevailing  trait  in  his  composition — a 
trait  so  marked  that  it  is  apparent  to  the  ‘‘naked 
eye^^ — is  an  exalted  estimate  of  himself.  His  hump 
of  self-conceit  is  wonderfully  developed,  and  he  is 
constantly  “ putting  on  airs.^^  He  is  one  of  those 
gentlemen  who  occasionally  find  their  way  into  the 
Capitol,  indulging  an  extravagant  idea  of  the  honor 
and  glory  of  being  an  Assemblyman. 

Mr.  McQuade  never  forgets,  for  a moment,  that  he  is 
a member  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  New  York. 
Mr.  McQuade  considers  that  the  eyes  of  the  people  are 
upon  him  ; wherefore  Mr.  McQuade  sometimes  ren- 
ders himself  exceedingly  ridiculous.  Nevertheless, 
Mr.  McQuade  sustains  the  reputation  of  a “ clever 
fellow.”  Although  of  small  intellect,  he  is  said  to  have 
a “ big  heart.”  In  the  sphere  wherein  nature  designed 
he  should  walk,  he  is  well  enough,  yet  it  cannot  be 
denied  that  he  is  far  better  calculated  to  shine  in  an 
“old  brewery”  or  a bar-room  than  in  the  Council 
Chambers  of  the  State. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


233 


JOHN  A.  McVEAN. 

Mr.  McYean  was  born  in  1823,  in  the  town  of  Free- 
town, Cortland  county,  N.  Y.  His  paternal  grand- 
father was  a native  of  Perthshire,  Scotland,  and  he  is 
a relative  of  the  late  Charles  P.  McVean,  Surrogate  of 
New  York  and  Brooklyn.  Mr.  McYean  was  educated  in 
the  Cortland  Academy,  and  was  engaged  as  a teacher 
during  some  seasons.  He  subsequently  travelled 
some  five  months  in  Europe,  besides  travelling  through 
the  Western  States,  and  is  now  engaged  in  farming. 
He  has  held  tha  office  of  Justice  of  the  Peace,  during 
the  last  seven  years,  and  has  been  two  years  Super- 
visor of  the  town  in  which  he  lives.  He  was  originally 
a Democrat,  but  since  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Com- 
promise, has  been  a sincere  and  consistent  Republican. 
He  was  elected  to  the  present  Assembly  by  the  hand- 
some majority  of  nearly  one  thousand,  and  since 
taking  his  seat  in  that  body,  has  given  considerable 
evidence  of  his  capability  as  a legislator. 

Mr.  McYean  attends  the  Methodist  Church. 


PETER  MASTERSON, 

Mr.  Masterson  was  born  in  the  city  of  New  York,  in 
1829,  and  is,  therefore,  one  of  the  youngest  members 
in  the  House.  He  is  of  Irish  descent,  and  his  parents 
came  to  America  about  thirty-six  years  ago.  They 
first  settled  in  Canada,  and  afterwards  lived  some  two 


234 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


or  three  years  where  the  City  Hall  now  stands  in  the 
city  of  Albany.  His  father,  Peter  Masterson,  died  in 
1852,  and  his  mother  is  still  living,  in  the  seventieth 
year  of  her  age.  Mr.  Masterson  received  an  ordinary 
English  education,  and  was  chiefly  engaged  as  a con- 
tractor till  1853,  when  he  was  chosen  Inspector  in  the 
Custom  House,  in  his  native  city.  This  position  he 
occupied  during  the  Collectorship  of  Judge  Bronson, 
with  whom  he  went  out  of  ofSce,  and  at  the  appoint- 
ment of  the  Hon.  Augustus  Schell,  was  reinstated, 
holding  the  position  again  until  his  election  to  the  As- 
sembly of  1859,  where  he  served  with  considerable  credit 
as  a member  of  the  Standing  Committee  on  State  Chari- 
table Institutions,  as  well  as  on  the  floor  of  the  House. 
He  was  re-elected  to  the  present  Legislature  at  the  last 
election  by  an  increased  majority,  in  Mayor  Wood^s  dis- 
trict, over  two  opponents,  the  Mozart  Hall  and  Oppo- 
sition candidates,  while,  at  his  first  election,  the  entire 
Democratic  vote  of  the  district  was  concentrated  upon 
him.  He  has  always  been  an  active  fireman,  having 
organized  the  Engine  Company  Black  Joke,^^  No.  33, 
of  which  he  has  been  for  some  years  foreman,  and 
three  years  ago  was  conspicuous  in  the  election  of 
Harry  Howard,  as  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Department, 
while  he  was  the  staunch  friend  of  John  Decker,  the 
present  incumbent,  for  the  same  position.  He  is  an 
active  Democrat,  of  the  Buchanan  school  ; was  for 
several  years  a member  of  the  Young  Men^s  Demo- 
cratic General  Committee  ; and  now  belongs  to  the 
Tammany  Hall  General  Committee,  of  which  he  was. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


235 


also,  an  active  and  influential  member  in  1859.  He  is 
a young  man  of  much  more  than  ordinary  personal 
popularity,  and  will,  doubtless,  prove  himself  faithful 
to  the  interests  of  his  constituents.  Mr.  Masterson 
was  married  in  1848,  to  Miss  Mary  T.  Quinn,  and  be- 
longs to  the  Catholic  Church. 


HENRY  MATHER. 

Mr.  Mather  was  born  on  the  9th  of  July,  1803,  in 
the  town  of  Lyme,  New  London  county,  Connecticut. 
His  ancestry  can  be  traced  as  far  back  as  the  seventh 
generation,  and  he  is  a lineal  decendant  of  John 
Mather,  and  a member  of  one  branch  of  the  family  to 
which  belonged  the  celebrated  Cotton  Mather,  the 
famous  New  England  divine,  so  prominent  in  Colonial 
history.  Kichard  Mather,  the  son  of  John,  and  the 
father  of  Increase  Mather,  was  the  first  of  the  family 
who  came  to  America.  He  was  a minister  of  eminent 
distinction,  and  having  been  silenced  for  non-conform- 
ity to  the  Established  Church,  came  to  New  England 
to  enjoy  the  rights  of  conscience,  and  the  purity 
of  Christian  ordinances.  He  arrived  at  Boston  harbor 
on  the  11th  of  August,  1635,  and  settled  in  Dorchester, 
Massachusetts.  His  son,  Timothy  Mather,  was  the 
father  of  Eichard  Mather,  who  settled  in  Lyme,  and 
who  was  the  father  of  Samuel  Mather,  the  father  of 
Eichard,  who  was  the  grand-father  of  the  subject  of 
this  sketch. 


236 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Mr/  Mather^s  father,  Sylvester  Mather,  who  was  a 
sea-captain,  was  lost  at  sea,  when  the  former  was 
only  eight  years  of  age,  and  his  mother,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Elizabeth  Wait,  and  who  was  a 
grand-daughter  of  the  first  Gov.  Griswold,  died  in 
1854,  at  the  ripe  old  age  of  eighty-six. 

Mr.  Mather  received  a common-school  education,  in 
his  native  place.  At  the  age  of  fourteen,  he  went  into 
his  brother-in-law’s  store,  as  a clerk,  and  remained 
there  until  1828,  when  he  removed  to  Binghamton, 
N.  Y.,  where  he  embarked  in  the  mercantile  trade, 
with  his  brother  Richard,  on  his  own  responsibility. 
The  co-partnership  thus  formed,  existed  some  seven 
years,  when  he  went  into  the  foundry  business,  which 
he  carried  on  about  the  same  length  of  time.  Since 
then,  he  has  been  engaged  in  buying  and  selling  real 
estate,  and  throughout  his  entire  business  career,  has 
been  an  eminently  successful  man.  He  has  held  the 
office  of  President  of  the  village  of  Binghamton, 
where  he  has  always  sustained  the  reputation  of  an 
enterprising  and  useful  citizen,  and  was  elected  to  the 
Assembly  by  nearly  four  hundred  majority,  in  a 
closely-contested  district.  He  has  never  been  am- 
bitious of  political  preferment,  although  one  among 
the  first  to  enlist  in  the  organization  of  the  Republican 
party,  after  the  dissolution  of  the  old  Whig  party,  but 
has  proven  himself  fully  equal  to  an  intelligent  and 
faithful  discharge  of  the  duties  with  which  his  con- 
stituents have  intrusted  him, 

Mr.  Mather  was  married,  in  1831,  to  Miss  Frances 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES, 


287 


Whiting,  great-grand-daughter  of  President  Edwards, 
the  first  author  of  the  celebrated  work  on  the  “Will,^^ 
and  belongs  to  the  Presbyterian  Church.  He  is  a 
gentleman  of  strong  natural  abilities,  firm  and  decided 
in  his  positions,  and  highly  respected  for  his  fine 
social  qualities  and  sterling  integrity. 


DARWIN  E.  MAXSON. 

Mr.  Maxson  was  born  on  the  15th  of  September, 
1822,  in  the  town  of  Plainfield,  Otsego  county,  N. 
and  is  supposed  to  be  of  Scotch-Irish  descent.  His 
father,  Josiah  G.  Maxson,  who  was  blind  in  the  prime 
of  life,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Lois 
Burdick,  are  both  still  living,  at  an  advanced  age. 

His  fathers  family  being  necessarily  poor,  Mr. 
Maxson  was  early  left  wholly  upon  his  own  unaided 
resources  for  a livelihood,  and  during  his  boyhood,  re- 
ceived nothing  more  than  a common  English  education. 
His  thirst  for  knowledge,  however,  was  so  great,  that, 
after  learning  the  black-smith’s  trade,  he  set  out,  with 
a few  dollars,  for  the  Academy  at  Alfred,  Allegany 
county,  N.  Y.,  where,  by  laboring  and  teaching,  dur- 
ing his  vacations,  he  passed  through  the  full  course 
of  study  prescribed  by  that  institution.  He  then 
entered  Brown  University,  at  Providence,  Rhode  Is- 
land, from  which  he  graduated  in  1852,  and  after 
receiving  an  appointment  as  Professor  in  the  Alfred 
Academy,  became  Professor  of  Natural  Sciences  in 


238 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


the  Alfred  University,  at  the  chartering  of  that  insti- 
tution, which  position  he  still  occupies.  He  was,  also, 
in  July,  1853,  ordained  as  a minister  of  the  Gospel,  in 
the  Seventh-day  Baptist  denomination,  and  has  since 
zealously  devoted  his  time  to  the  cause  of  science  and 
religion,  believing  these  to  be  the  chief  instrumentali- 
ties for  perfecting  the  race. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Maxson  is  a devoted  friend  of  the 
cause  of  Freedom,  and  will  probably  remain  firm  in  his 
attachment  to  the  Republican  party,  so  long  as  it 
remains  true  to  that  great  principle.  He  believes  in 
a Higher  Law,  and  looks  upon  human  laws  as  binding 
only  so  far  as  they  conform  to  that  law.  Still,  he  pre- 
fers a literary  to  a political  life,  and  never  consented 
to  occupy  any  political  position,  until  his  election  to 
the  present  Assembly.  He  is  esteemed  as  a man  of  high 
character  and  ability  wherever  he  is  known,  and  dis- 
charges his  legislative  duties  with  the  most  perfect 
honesty  and  disinterestedness. 

Mr.  Maxson  was  married  in  the  fall  of  1849,  to  Miss 
Hannah  A,  Green,  of  Alfred  Centre. 


EDWIN  A.  MERRITT. 

Mr.  Merritt  was  born  on  the  26th  of  February,  1828, 
in  the  town  of  Sudbury,  Rutland  county,  Vermont. 
He  sprung  from  unmixed  English  and  Scotch  ancestry, 
and  is  proud  of  the  blood  which  flows  in  his  veins. 
His  paternal  grand-father  was  a gallant  soldier  in  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES* 


239 


Revolution^  serving  with  distinction,  as  a volunteer, 
during  the  war,  and  took  a prominent  and  active  part 
in  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill.  His  father,  Noadiah 
Merritt,  who  was  a native  of  Massachusetts,  died  on 
the  1st  of  January,  1854,  at  the  age  of  seventy-two, 
and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Relief  Parker, 
is  still  living,  in  the  sixty-ninth  year  of  her  age. 

Mr.  Merritt  lived  four  years  in  Westport,  Essex  co., 
N.  Y.  He  then  went  to  St.  Lawrence  county,  and  has 
been  residing  in  the  town  of  Pierpont  since  1842.  He 
was  educated  principally  at  a common  school,  but  was 
a student,  during  a portion  of  several  terms,  at  the 
St.  Lawrence  Academy,  at  Potsdam,  St,  Lawrence 
county.  He  then  worked  on  a farm  until  he  was  twenty® 
two  years  of  age,  and  after  spending  two  years  at  the 
Carpenter  and  joiner^s  trade,  became  a surveyor  and 
civil  engineer,  in  which  he  is  still  engaged.  He  was 
elected  Supervisor  of  the  town  of  Pierpont  in  1854, 
holding  that  position  some  three  years,  and  in  1851 
was  appointed  Clerk  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  of 
St.  Lawrence  County,  which  office  he  still  occupies* 
He  was  originally  a Democrat,  of  the  SofLshell  stamp, 
and  after  serving  some  time  in  the  ranks  of  the  Amer- 
ican party,  became  a Republican. 

Mr.  Merritt  was  married  on  the  5th  of  May,  1858,  to 
Miss  Eliza  Rich,  a lady  of  superior  worth  and  intellL 
gence  in  every  respect* 


240 


BlOGRAt>HtCAL  SKtTCttfiS. 


STEPHEN  MEKSELIS,  Jb. 

Mr.  Merselis  was  born  on  the  30th  of  August,  1812, 
and  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Knox,  Albany  couhty, 
N.  Y.  He  is  of  Dutch  descent,  and  his  paternal  grand- 
father was  a pay-master  in  the  Kevolution.  His  father, 
Stephen  Merselis,  is  still  living,  at  the  advanced  age 
of  seventy-seven,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name 
was  Nancy  Hilton,  died  in  the  sixty-seventh  year  of 
her  age, 

Mr.  Merselis  was  educated  in  the  common  schools 
of  his  native  place,  and  is  wholly  a self-made  man. 
He  is  a mason  by  trade,  and  followed  that  business 
until  the  spring  of  1855,  since  which  time  he  has  been 
engaged  in  farming.  He  has  held  the  office  of  Justice 
of  the  Peace  some  six  years,  and  was  Supervisor  of 
his  town  during  the  years  1852  and  ^53.  He  was 
elected  to  the  Assembly,  at  the  last  election,  by  a 
majority  of  over  three  hundred,  and  is  faithful  and 
energetic  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  in  that  body. 
In  politics,  he  was  originally  a Whig,  and  since  the 
inauguration  of  the  Kepublican  movement,  has  been 
an  active  and  consistent  member  of  that  party. 

Mr.  Merselis  was  married  on  the  29th  of  October, 
1834,  to  Miss  Eve  Sand,  and  belongs  to  the  Methodist 
Church.  He  is  a gentleman  of  good  social  qualities, 
and  stands  high  in  the  community  in  which  he  resides. 
There  is  nothing  of  the  spread  eagle”  in  his  composi- 
tion, simplicity,  firmness,  and  practicability  being  his 
chief  characteristics,  and  he  always  speaks  and  acts 
like  a man  of  good  common-sense. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


241 


HENRY  B.  MILLER. 

Mr.  Miller  was  born  on  tlie  16th  of  April,  1819,  in 
Lebanon  county,  Penn.  His  ancestors  were  Germans, 
and  came  to  this  country  about  the  middle  of  the  last 
century,  during  the  prevalence  of  the  religious  wars, 
at  that  time  devastating  that  portion  of  Europe.  At  the 
time  of  his  birth,  his  native  State  had  not  yet  inaugu- 
rated her  liberal  school  system,  and  the  only  advantages 
of  education  were  to  be  obtained  in  very  inferior  country 
schools.  At  the  age  of  fourteen,  he  entered  a printing- 
office,  at  the  seat  of  his  native  county,  where  he  re- 
mained till  1836,  when  he  emigrated  to  the  north- 
western part  of  Indiana.  In  1839,  he  established  the 
'Niles  Republican^  as  a Whig  paper,  and  assisted  in  the 
organization  of  the  Whig  party  in  the  State  of  Michi- 
gan, which  party  triumphed  at  that  and  the  two  sub- 
sequent elections.  Having  disposed  of  his  paper  in 
Niles,  in  1844,  he  procured  a new  office,  and  in  Sep- 
tember of  that  year,  issued  the  first  number  of  the 
Michigan  Telegraphy  in  Kalamazoo,  which  was  devoted 
to  the  claims  of  Henry  Clay  for  the  Presidency.  The 
result  of  that  election,  and  the  policy  of  the  oppo- 
sition in  crushing  out  all  the  Whig  papers  in  that 
State,  induced  him  to  dispose  of  his  establishment, 
which  he  did  in  1845. 

In  the  fall  of  1845,  Mr.  Miller  became  a resident  of 
the  city  of  Buffalo,  and  being  conversant  with  the 
German  language,  established  the  Buffalo  Telegraphy 
a German  paper,  which,  with  the  exception  of  some 

II 


242 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


local  papers  in  Pennsylvania,  was  the  only  German 
Whig  paper  in  the  United  States.  This  paper,  which 
he  published  until  about  three  years  ago,  nearly  revo- 
lutionized the  German  vote  of  Western  New  York,  in 
the  Presidential  campaign  of  1848.  In  1849  he  was 
appointed  Superintendent  and  Inspector  of  Lights 
on  the  North-western  Lakes,”  which  position  he  suc- 
cessfully occupied,  until  removed  by  the  subsequent 
Administration,  when  he  disposed  of  his  printing  es- 
tablishment, and  engaged,  in  1853,  in  the  construction 
of  a telegraph  from  Quebec  to  Montreal.  He  then 
resumed  the  publication  of  his  paper  till  1855,  since 
which  time  he  has  been  extensively  engaged  in  con- 
tracting. In  the  fall  of  1858  he  was  brought  forward 
by  the  Americans  and  Kepublicans  of  his  district  as 
a candidate  for  the  Assembly,  and  was  triumphantly 
elected  by  a majority  of  fifteen  hundred.  During  the 
session  of  the  Legislature  which  followed,  he  served 
with  considerable  distinction  as  a member  of  that  body, 
occupying  a high  position  on  the  Standing  Committee 
on  Public  Printing,  and  was  again  elected  at  the  last 
election  by  a complimentary  majority.  He  is  a man 
of  industry,  perseverance,  and  intelligence,  and  wields 
a strong  influence  in  the  present  House. 

Mr.  Miller  was  married  about  eighteen  years  ago, 
and  attends  the  Baptist  Church. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


243 


WILLIAM  T.  B.  MILLIKEN. 

Mr.  Milliken,  the  sorrel-topped  gentleman  from  West- 
chester, is  one  of  the  most  ready  impromptu  speakers 
in  the  House,  talking  right  straight  along,  with  con- 
siderable emphasis,  like  a lawyer,  and  never  allows 
any  subject  to  pass  through  the  Committee  of  the 
Whole,  without  ventilating  himself  thoroughly  upon  it. 
He  is  a gentleman  of  medium  height  ; rather  grace- 
fully formed,  with  light-blue  eyes,  and  a deceitful 
expression  of  countenance,  which  renders  ‘‘white  man 
mighty  unsartMJ^ 

Mr.  Milliken'is  a native  of  the  city  of  New  York, 
where  he  claims  to  be  doing  business  as  a lawyer,  but 
*is  ostensibly  a resident  of  Westchester  county.  He 
has  exhibited  some  ability,  and  a good  degree  of  tact 
and  shrewdness,  since  the  opening  of  the  Legislature, 
and  stands  prominently  forth  at  the  head  of  almost 
every  measure  of  an  uncertain  character  in  the  House 
— every  thing  of  a soulless,  corporate  nature — railroad 
and  steamboat  speculations — and  evidently  cherishes 
a strong  and  determined  hostility  toward  the  canals 
and  every  thing  else  in  which  the  people  of  the  State 
are  really  interested.  No  one  doubts,  for  a moment, 
that  he  is  on  speaking  terms  with  the  lobby,  whose 
numbers,  at  the  Capitol,  now  far  outstrip  all  con- 
ception, standing  on  no  such  useless  ceremony  as 
“ hanging  up  his  over-coat,”  and  that  he  is  a perfect 
sycophantic  satellite,  constantly  bending  a pliant  knee 
to  the  almighty  dollar,  “ that  thrift  may  follow 
fawning.” 


244 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


STEPHEN  E,  MILLINGTON. 

Dr.  Millington  was  born  on  the  9th  of  February,  1826, 
in  Russia,  Herkimer  county,  N.  Y.  His  paternal  an- 
cestors came  from  Yorkshire,  England,  and  his  father, 
Richard  Millington,  was  the  only  son  of  Nathan  Mil- 
lington, who  was  well  known  in  Herkimer  county  for 
his  native  talent,  sound  and  discriminating  judgment, 
and  general  intelligence,  having  been  for  many  years 
Supervisor  and  Justice  of  the  Peace  in  his  native  town. 
His  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Matilda  Robens, 
is  the  oldest  daughter  of  Reuben  Robens,  of  Cold 
Brook,  Herkimer  county,  N.  Y. 

Dr.  Millington  worked  on  his  fathers  farm,  and 
attended  a district  school,  until  the  fail  of  1842,  when 
he  entered  the  Fairfield  Academy,  where  he  remained 
until  the  spring  of  1845.  He  then  commenced  the 
study  of  medicine  in  the  office  of  his  friend.  Dr.  W alter 
Booth ; attended  lectures  at  the  Geneva  and  the 
Albany  Medical  College  in  the  winter  of  1846  aiidHl, 
and  graduated  in  medicine  at  the  former  place  in  1848: 
Since  then  he  has  been  successfully  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  his  profession  in  Norway,  Herkimer  county, 
where  he  now  resides.  He  has  held  the  ofiice 
of  Town  Superintendent  of  Common  Schools,  Town 
Clerk,  and  Supervisor,  and  was  a delegate  to  the 
American  Medical  Association,  held  in  the  city 
of  New  York,  in  May,  1858,  and  in  1859.  In  poli- 
tics, he  was  always  a Freesoil  Democrat,  until  the 
campaign  of  1856,  when  he  supported  CoL  Fremont  for 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


245 


the  Presidency,  and  has  since  been  a Republican.  He 
was  chosen  a member  of  the  present  Assembly  by  a 
majority  of  over  six  hundred,  and  is  one  among  the 
most  popular,  influential,  and  useful  members  of  that 
body.  It  is  generally  conceded  that  his  late  speech 
in  support  of  the  Pro  Rata  Freight  measure  was  one 
of  the  best  efforts  of  the  present  session. 

Dr.  Millington  was  married  in  January,  1848,  to  Miss 
Ada  R.,  daughter  of  E.  N.  Walker,  of  Russia,  who 
died  in  July,  1852,  and  in  May,  1853,  married  his  pre- 
sent estimable  lady,  Miss  Harty  L.  Lamberson,  by 
whom  he  has  a promising  son  of  five  years  of  age.  He 
is  a member  of  the  Baptist  Church,  and  stands  de- 
servedly high  in  all  the  private  and  social  relations  of 
life.  He  is  a man  of  prepossessing  personal  appear- 
ance, being  above  the  medium  height,  well-formed,  with 
light-brown  hair,  intelligent  blue  eyes,  and  a mild, 
good-natured  countenance,  which  indicates  the  real 
gentleman. 


ALLEN  D.  MORGAN. 

Mr.  Morgan  was  born  in  the  town  of  Scipio,  Cayu- 
ga county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  thirty-five  years  of  age.  He 
is  now  engaged  in  farming,  in  that  county,  and  has 
the  reputation  of  being  a highly  respectable  gentle- 
man, though  not  particularly  distinguished  among  his 
fellow-citizens.  In  politics,  he  was  formerly  a Whig, 
of  the  Freesoil  school,  and  early  enlisted  in  the  Re- 
publican movement,  to  which  he  has  always  since 


246 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


tenaciously  adhered.  He  is  strong  and  unyielding  in 
his  party  attachments,  but  although  a neighbor,  friend, 
and  great  admirer  of  Mr.  Seward,  is  overflowing  in  his 
hostility  to  the  nomination  of  that  gentleman  by  the 
Chicago  Convention,  as  a candidate  for  the  Presidency. 
A cordial  union  of  the  entire  Opposition,  he  claims, 
is  all  that  can  secure  a successful  triumph  over  the 
Democracy  in  the  approaching  National  contest,  and 
such  a union  can  only  be  achieved  by  the  nomination 
of  a more  conservative  man  than  the  ^‘Sage  of  Au- 
burn.” 


ELBKIDGE  G.  MOULTON. 

Mr.  Moulton  was  born  on  the  23d  of  August,  1812, 
in  Alexander,  Genesee  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  now  the 
oldest  native-born  resident  of  that  town.  He  is  of 
Scotch  descent,  and  springs  from  genuine  Revolution- 
ary stock.  His  father.  Royal  Moulton,  is  still  living, 
at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-eight,  and  his  mother 
died  in  1842,  at  the  age  of  sixty-two. 

Mr.  Moulton  was  educated  in  a common  school,  and  at 
the  age  of  twenty-one  engaged  in  the  dry-goods  busi- 
ness, which  he  followed  till  1853,  since  which  time  he  has 
been  chiefly  engaged  in  farming.  He  has  occupied  va- 
rious town  offices  in  his  native  place,  including  Super- 
visor, three  years,  and  was  post-master  from  1849  tilP53. 
In  the  fall  of  1858  he  was  elected  to  the  Assembly, 
by  the  largest  majority  ever  before  given  for  a candi- 
date in  his  district,  and  during  the  session  which  fol- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


247 


lowed,  was  one  of  the  most  active  and  useful  members 
of  that  body.  He  occupied  a prominent  position  on 
the  standing  Committees  on  Grievances  and  Expendi- 
tures of  the  Executive  Department,  and  was  then,  as 
he  is  now,  an  unyielding  friend  of  a Pro-Rata  freight 
law.  He  was,  also,  chairman  of  the  Select  Committee, 
to  which  was  referred  that  portion  of  the  Governor’s 
Message  relating  to  the  equalization  of  the  State  tax, 
and  reported  the  bill  to  the  House  on  that  subject, 
which  subsequently  became  a law.  He  is  a gentle- 
man of  much  more  than  ordinary  intelligence  ; is  tho- 
roughly acquainted  with  the  canal  and  railroad  policy 
of  the  State  ; and  is  eminently  successful  as  a legis- 
lator, having  never  yet  failed  to  secure  the  passage 
of  any  bill  of  which  he  has  had  the  especial  charge. 
He  is  perfectly  indefatigable  in  whatever  he  under- 
takes, and  his  peculiar  faculty  of  confining  himself 
exclusively  to  the  accomplishment  of  one  thing  at  a 
time,  is,  doubtless,  one  of  the  greatest  secrets  of  his 
success  in  all  his  undertakings. 

Mr.  Moulton  was  always  a Whig,  until  the  dissolu- 
tion of  that  party,  when  he  became  a Republican.  Al- 
though liberal  in  his  political  views,  he  is  a strong 
party  man,  and  is  straight-forward  and  faithful  in  the 
fulfillment  of  his  party  obligations.  He  is  a sociable, 
friendly,  and  agreeable  man,  and  discharges  the  duties 
of  his  office  with  honor  to  himself,  and  credit  to  his 
constituents. 

Mr.  Moulton  was  married,  in  1849,  to  his  present 
wife.  Miss  Mary  Warren,  a superior  lady  in  every  re- 
spect, and  attends  the  Universalist  Church. 


248 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


AUSTIN  MYEES. 

Captain  Myers  was  born  on  the  6th  of  July,  1815, 
in  Saratoga  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  of  German  extrac- 
tion, his  ancestors  having  come  from  Baden,  during 
the  Revolution.  They  were  zealous  Whigs,  and  took 
an  active  part  against  Great  Britain.  The  Captain  has 
fully  carried  out  the  virtues  which  he  inherited.  His 
father,  Samuel  Myers,  was  an  energetic,  persevering 
man,  and  although  suffering  losses  enough  to  discour- 
age any  ordinary  person,  he  started  business  anew  in 
the  city  of  New  York.  Having  been  left  a widow,  by 
his  death,  in  1816,  Mrs.  Myers,  a strong-minded,  brave, 
true-hearted  woman,  removed  to  Ballston  Springs, 
where  she  married  Gideon  Luther. 

At  the  age  of  fifteen,  Capt.  Myers,  with  the  approba- 
tion of  his  mother,  came  to  Albany,  to  work  at  the  saddle 
and  harness  business,  and  in  September,  1833,  married 
Miss  Maria  Jane  Van  Alstyne,  the  daughter  of  an  Al- 
bany county  farmer.  One  daughter  has  been  the  re- 
sult of  this  marriage,  who  is  now  the  wife  of  William 
P.  Sabey,  of  Syracuse.  Immediately  upon  his  mar- 
riage, the  Captain  emigrated  to  Syracuse,  where  he 
arrived  safely  with  only  eighteen  pence  in  his  pocket, 
and  not  an  acquaintance  at  that  point.  He,  however, 
obtained  work  promptly,  and  cleared  one  hundred  dol- 
lars the  first  year.  He  then  set  up  for  himself  in  the 
village  of  Jordan,  and  purchased,  in  addition,  a public 
house,  where  he  demonstrated  that  he  was  fully  able  to 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


249 


“keep  a hotel.”  In  1836,  he  sold  his  property,  and 
went  back  to  Syracuse,  where  he  again  engaged  in  the 
saddle  and  harness  business,  which  he  successfully 
prosecuted  until  1840,  when  he  disposed  of  his  entire 
stock,  worth  several  thousand  dollars,  and  being  an 
enthusiastic  Whig,  agreed  to  take  his  pay  when  Har- 
rison was  elected  President.  With  the  funds  thus  ob- 
tained, he  purchased  several  packet-boats  ; became 
captain  of  one,  and  placed  the  others  in  charge  of 
friends.  For  ten  years  he  steered  his  own  craft,  liter- 
ally and  figuratively,  gaining  the  reputation  of  being 
the  best  captain  on  the  canal.  The  railroad  competi- 
tion, however,  destroyed  his  profits,  and  he  transferred 
his  capital  to  the  transportation  business,  in  which  he 
has  fifty  thousand  dollars  now  invested.  He  is,  also, 
a stockholder  and  director  in  the  Syracuse  and  Oswego 
Kailroad,  the  Chicago,  Iowa,  and  Nebraska  Railroad, 
the  Mount  Vernon  Railroad,  in  Illinois  ; also,  in  the 
Mechanics’  Bank,  and  the  Bank  of  Syracuse.  He  is, 
also,  proprietor  of  the  Myers  block,  and  the  Courier 
block,  and  of  other  real  estate,  to  the  value  of  one 
hundred  thousand  dollars. 

Captain  Myers  was  formerly  a Whig,  and  although 
now  a thorough-going  steadfast  member  of  the  Repub- 
lican party,  is  not  an  aspirant  for  political  distinction. 
He  is  one  of  the  most  popular  men  in  the  Legislature, 
and  discharges  his  duties  honestly  and  faithfully,  to  the 
best  interests  of  his  constituents. 

11* 


250 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ANDREW  A.  MYERS. 

Mr.  Myers  was  born  on  Beach  street,  in  the  city  of 
New  York,  on  the  30th  of  October,  1809.  He  is  of 
German  descent,  and  his  grand-father,  who  emigrated 
to  this  country  about  the  time  of  its  earliest  settlement, 
and  who  died  in  the  old  Sugar  House  on  Liberty  street, 
in  the  city  of  New  York,  was  a gallant  soldier  in  the 
Revolutionary  struggle,  and  did  good  service  in  the 
cause  of  his  adopted  country.  His  father,  Cornelius 
Myers,  who  served  in  the  war  of  1812,  died  in  the  city 
of  New  York  in  1833,  at  the  age  of  sixty-two,  and  his 
mother  died  in  1849,  at  the  age  of  fifty-seven.  Both 
his  parents  were  born  in  his  native  city. 

Mr.  Myers  received  a common  English  education, 
and  in  1828  received  a license  as  a public  cartman  in 
the  city  of  New  York,  which  occupation  he  followed 
over  a quarter  of  a century,  and  then  turned  his 
attention  to  farming,  in  which  he  has  always  since 
been  successfully  engaged.  Under  the  administration 
of  Gov.  Seymour,  he  was  appointed  Wreck  Master  for 
the  county  of  Kings,  which  office  he  still  holds,  and 
on  the  12th  of  January,  1851,  was  appointed  In- 
spector of  Customs  in  the  city  of  New  York,  under 
Collector  Redfield,  and  occupied  the  position  until  the 
19th  of  June,  1858.  He  was,  also,  appointed  post- 
master on  the  3d  of  February,  1855,  at  Canarsie, 
Kings  county,  where  he  still  resides,  and  has  held  the 
position  up  to  the  present  time,  discharging  his  duties 
honestly  and  faithfully,  and  to  the  entire  satisfaction 
of  the  community  in  which  he  lives. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


251 


Mr.  Myers  has  always  been  a firm  and  consistent 
Democrat  of  the  more  conservative  stamp,  and  when 
a boy  used  to  go  to  old  Tammany  with  his  father  to  fold 
tickets,  generally  making  the  most  of  the  opportunity 
to  stuff  his  pockets  with  cheese  and  crackers.  He  has 
been  a member  of  Tammany  Society  since  the  9th  of 
February,  1841,  and  has  always  been  an  energetic  and 
enthusiastic  member  of  his  party. 

Mr.  M.  was  married  on  the  30th  of  October,  1828,  to 
Miss  Margaret  Galliker,  who  died  on  the  9th  of  August, 

1855,  and  was  again  married  on  the  22d  of  March, 

1856,  to  Miss  Elizabeth  Rebecca  Turcut.  He  usually 
attends  the  Baptist  Church. 


HIRAM  NEWELL. 

Mr.  Newell  was  born  on  the  soil  of  New  England, 
on  the  29th  of  July,  1818,  being  a native  of  the  town 
of  Burke,  Caledonia  county,  Vermont.  His  father, 
Rufus  Newell,  is  still  living,  at  the  age  of  seventy-six, 
and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Betsey 
Beckworth,  died  at  an  advanced  age,  in  1853. 

Mr.  Newell  received  a common-school  education,  in 
his  native  place,  and  in  1834  removed  to  New  York, 
with  his  parents,  who  settled  in  Essex  county,  in  that 
State.  Two  years  afterwards,  he  left  his  fathers 
farm,  and  became  a clerk  in  a store,  which  position 
he  filled  some  three  years.  He  was  then  engaged 
two  years  as  a partner,  in  an  iron  establishment,  in 


252 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Clinton  county,  after  which  he  was  employed  in  the 
mercantile  trade,  on  his  own  responsibility,  in  Essex 
county,  until  February,  1846,  when  he  became  book- 
keeper and  cashier  in  the  Port  Henry  Iron  Works,  in 
that  county.  He  occupied  this  position  until  August, 
184T,  when  he  again  embarked  in  the  mercantile  and 
iron  business,  which  he  successfully  followed  until 
1851,  when  he  removed  to  Erie  county,  where  he  has 
since  been  engaged  in  the  mercantile  trade. 

Mr.  Newell  has  held  various  town  oflSces,  including 
that  of  Supervisor,  and  in  1857  was  President  of  the 
village  of  Tonawanda,  and  was  one  of  its  trustees  in 
1848.  He  was  formerly  a Democrat  until  1848,  when 
he  took  his  position  upon  the  celebrated  Buffalo 
platform,  and  since  the  commencement  of  the  Eepub- 
lican  movement,  has  been  a member  of  that  party. 
He  is  not  a politician,  although  strongly  attached  to 
his  principles,  and  has  only  sought  to  acquire  the 
reputation  of  an  upright  and  enterprising  business 
man,  in  which  he  has  been  eminently  successful. 

Mr.  Newell  was  married  in  1840,  to  Miss  Pheba 
Bush,  and  usually  attends  the  Methodist  Church,  of 
which  his  wife  is  a member. 


N.  HOLMES  ODELL. 

Mr.  Odell  was  born  on  the  10th  of  October,  1828, 
near  Tarrytown,  Westchester  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  of 
Welsh  and  Dutch  descent,  and  some  of  his  ancestors 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


253 


were  active  participants  in  the  Revolutionary  war. 
His  father,  Jonathan  L.  Odell,  who  has  been  a suc- 
cessful steamboat  captain  on  the  North  river,  for  a 
period  of  thirty  years,  is  still  living,  at  an  advanced 
age,  as  is,  also,  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Jane  Tompkins. 

Mr.  Odell  was  educated  at  the  Paulding  Institute, 
at  Tarrytown.  After  graduating,  he  engaged  in  the 
mercantile  trade,  at  the  same  time  passing  a few  years 
in  steam-boating  between  Albany  and  New  York,  and 
is  now  doing  business  under  the  firm  name  of  Odell  & 
Clark,  at  the  Tarrytown  depot.  He  has  occupied 
various  town  offices,  including  that  of  Justice  of  the 
Peace,*  which  he  held  some  four  years,  and  in  every 
position  to  which  the  people  have  called  him,  has 
discharged  his  duties  honestly,  faithfully,  and  with 
entire  success.  He-was  formerly  an  old-line  Whig,  of 
the  Henry  Clay  school,  and  was  elected  to  his  present 
position  by  a union  of  Democrats  and  Americans. 
Since  the  dissolution  of  the  Whig  party,  he  has  always 
acted  with  the  American  party  ; but  he  looks  upon  the 
Democratic  party  as  eminently  national,  having  a per- 
manent organization  in  every  State  in  the  Union,  and 
is  always  ready,  if  necessary,  to  co-operate  with  that 
party  in  securing  the  defeat  of  the  extreme  sectional- 
ism into  which,  he  claims,  the  Republican  party  has 
now  hopelessly  degenerated.  He  is  one  of  the  most 
quiet  and  unostentatious  gentlemen  in  either  branch 
of  the  Legislature,  with  a good  heart,  sound  judgment, 
and  excellent  business  qualities,  and  pursues  his 


254 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


legislative  career  in  a manner  that  doubtless  will  not 
fail  to  extort  the  almost  universal  and  well-deserved 
praise  of  the  good  people  of  his  district. 

Mr.  Odell  is  still  single.  He  is  an  Episcopalian, 
and  attends  Christas  Church,  at  Tarrytown,  in  which 
the  late  Washington  Irving  officiated  for  many  years 
as  Warden,  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Creighton  as  Rector. 


THOMAS  O’EORKE. 

Mr.  O^Rorke  is  a native  of  the  city  of  New  York, 
where  he  was  born  in  1833,  aud  is,  therefore,  one  of 
the  youngest  men  in  the  present  Legislature.  He 
sprang  from  genuine,  unadulterated,  unmixed  Irish 
stock,  and  glories  in  the  blood  which  flows  in  his 
veins.  His  parents,  both  of  whom  are  now  dead,  emi- 
grated to  America  from  Ireland,  and  were  highly  re- 
spected, in  their  life-time,  by  a wide  circle  of  sincere 
and  devoted  friends. 

Mr.  O^Rorke  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of 
his  native  city,  and  has  always  been  chiefly  engaged 
in  speculating.  He  was  brought  forward,  at  the  last 
election,  as  the  Tammany  candidate  for  the  position 
he  now  holds,  and  was  triumphantly  elected,  by  a hand- 
some plurality,  over  three  opposing  candidates.  He 
has  always  been  a Democrat,  of  the  Tammany  Hall 
school,  and  has  always  been  among  the  hard  workers 
of  his  party,  in  the  city  of  New  York.  He  is  a kind, 
clever,  companionable  gentleman,  and  sustains  a high 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


255 


degree  of  personal  popularity  among  his  legislative 
associates  at  the  State  Capitol. 

Mr.  O’Rorke  -was  married,  in  1854,  to  Miss  Ann 
Tracy,  and  belongs  to  the  Catholic  Church.  He  is  ra- 
ther a prepossessing  gentleman  in  his  personal  appear- 
ance, being  of  medium  height,  with  a well-formed 
body,  black,  curly  hair,  and  English  side  whiskers, 
clear,  black  eyes,  and  a good-natured,  intelligent  face, 
whidh  wins  him  friends  wherever  he  goes. 


ABIAH  W.  PALMER. 

Mr.  Palmer  is  one  of  the  youngest  and  most  person- 
able members  of  the  House,  having  just  reached  his 
twenty-fifth  year,  and  being  tall  and  well-formed,  with 
jet  black  hair  and  whiskers,  magnetic  black  eyes,  and 
an  expression  of  countenance  which  indicates,  in  an 
unusual  degree,  a combination  of  all  the  essential  ele- 
ments of  personal  popularity. 

Mr.  Palmer  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Amenia, 
Dutchess  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  was  born  on  the  25th 
of  January,  1835,  and  is  descended  from  good  old 
English  stock.  His  parents  both  died  when  he  was 
quite  young,  the  death  of  his  father,  Abiah  Palmer, 
who  was  a Captain  in  the  war  of  1812,  having  occurred 
in  1835,  and  that  of  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name 
was  Laura  Parsons,  in  1843. 

Mr.  Palmer  received  a partial  classical  education. 


256 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


having  passed  some  time  at  Union  College,  Schenec- 
tady, N.  Y.,  which  he  left  in  1856,  in  consequence  of 
ill  health,  and  sailed  for  Europe,  where  he  remained 
until  1858,  when  he  returned  to  the  United  States.  He 
was  brought  up  on  a farm,  and  is  now  engaged  in  agri- 
cultural pursuits  and  in  mining.  He  is  a young  gen- 
tlemen of  much  more  than  ordinary  promise,  possess- 
ing considerable  ability,  and  enjoying  the  entire 
confidence  of  his  constituents,  and  although  compara- 
tively inexperienced,  both  as  to  men  and  the  ordinary 
routine  of  legislation,  fulfills  the  duties  of  his  position 
with  credit  to  himself,  and  material  advantage  to  the 
best  interests  of  his  own  immediate  district  and  the 
State. 

Mr.  Palmer  is  still  single,  and  attends  the  Baptist 
Church. 


WM.  W.  PAYNE. 

Mr.  Payne  was  born  on  the  22d  of  January,  1814, 
at  Hamilton,  Madisdn  county,  N.  Y.  His  ancestors 
were  English,  and  among  the  first  settlers  of  New 
England.  He  is  a lineal  descendant  of  Robert  Payne, 
who  inter-married  with  a Pilgrim  family  by  the  name 
of  Treat,  and  whose  son,  Robert  Treat  Payne,  was  one 
of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  in 
behalf  of  the  old  Bay  State.  His  paternal  grand-uncle 
was  the  noted  Judge  Ephraim  Payne,  of  Dutchess 
county,  a member  of  the  State  convention  which  abol- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


257 


ished  slavery  in  this  State,  and  his  grand-father,  Abra- 
ham Payne,  who,  when  Tom  Paine  published  his  ‘‘  Age 
of  Reason, omitted  the  in  his  name,  was  a suc- 
cessful Congregational  minister.  He  is  the  son  of 
Judge  Elisha  Payne,  who  was  one  of  the  first  settlers 
in  the  Chenango  Valley,  and  who  died  in  1843,  and  is 
a younger  brother  of  the  Hon.  H.  B.  Payne,  of  Ohio, 
who  was  the  unsuccessful  candidate  for  Governor  of 
that  State  in  1857. 

Mr.  Payne  was  educated  at  the  Hamilton  Academy, 
and  taught  during  the  winter  until  1832,  when,  his 
health  failing,  he  engaged  in  the  mercantile  trade, 
which  he  abandoned  about  a year  afterwards.  He 
then  travelled  through  the  Western  and  South-western 
States,  and  resided,  temporarily,  in  St.  Louis,  Louis- 
ville, Ky.,  and  in  Kaskaskia,  111.  After  spending 
some  time,  in  1835,  in  Texas,  he  went  to  Red  River, 
Louisiana,  where  he  resumed  his  mercantile  pursuits, 
which  he  followed  successfully  till  1840,  when  he 
returned  to  his  native  State,  and  since  which  time  he 
has  been  employed  in  the  cultivation  of  his  farm  near 
Auburn.  He  was  elected  to  the  Assembly  of  1859, 
by  over  one  thousand  majority,  and  served  with 
marked  ability  and  distinction  in  that  body,  both  on 
the  floor  of  the  House,  and  as  a member  of  the  stand- 
ing Committees  on  Banks  and  the  Manufacture  of  Salt, 
His  entire  course  at  Albany  was  so  satisfactory  to  his 
constituents,  that  he  was  renominated  and  elected  at 
the  last  election  by  an  increased  majority,  and  is  again 
among  the  most  influential  and  useful  members  of  the 


258 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


House.  In  politics,  he  was  formerly  a Whig  ; but  at 
the  dissolution  of  that  party,  was  one  among  the 
first  to  enlist  in  the  Republican  movement,  and  is 
strongly  in  favor  of  Mr.  Seward  for  the  Presidency. 

Mr.  Payne  was  married,  in  1840,  to  Miss  B.  S.  Sears, 
of  Auburn,  and  is  a member  of  the  Baptist  Church. 
He  is  an  intelligent  and  industrious  representative. 


LEWIS  PECK. 

Mr.  Peck  is  a large,  substantial-looking  man,  with 
great  firmness  and  decision  of  character  in  his  coun- 
tenance, and  is  a very  useful  and  influential  member 
of  the  House.  He  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Phelps, 
Ontario  county,  N.  Y.,  and  was  born  on  the  13th  of 
May,  1816.  He  is  a regular  Anglo-Saxon,  and  sprung 
from  good  old,  substantial  Revolutionary  stock.  His 
father,  Elisha  Peck,  is  still  living,  at  the  advanced  age 
of  sixty-eight,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name 
was  Lucinda  Warner,  died  in  1832,  in  the  thirty- 
fourth  year  of  her  age. 

In  1844,  Mr.  Peck  graduated  at  Madison  University, 
and  possesses  a fine  classical  education.  After  leaving 
college,  he  taught  school  some  twelve  years  in  his 
native  place,  and  since  1854  has  been  engaged  in 
farming.  He  has  been  Supervisor  of  the  toiyn  of 
Phelps,  where  he  still  resides,  during  the  past  four 
years,  and  is  a man  of  character  and  influence  in  every 
department  of  human  activity. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


259 


Mr.  Peck  was  married,  in  the  fall  of  1854,  to  Miss 
Sarah  E.  Long*,  of  the  town  of  York,  Livingston  coun- 
ty, N.  Y.,  and  usually  attends  the  Baptist  Church,  of 
which  his  wife  is  a member.  He  is,  physically,  one  of 
the  largest  men  in  the  House,  and  fills  his  s^at  with 
a dignity  and  decorum,  that  admirably  becomes  a 
representative  of  the  people.  He  is  diligent  and  in- 
dustrious in  the  discharge  of  his  official  duties,  being 
seldom  absent  from  his  seat,  and  votes  intelligently 
and  understandingly  on  all  questions  coming  before 
him  for  consideration. 


EDWIN  A.  FELTON. 

Mr.  Pelton  was  born  in  Portland,  Conn.,  in  1816. 
He  is  of  French  descent,  and  is  the  son  of  Samuel  Pel- 
ton,  who  is  still  living,  at  a very  advanced  age,  in  the 
same  house  in  which  he  was  born.  He  received  a 
common-school  education  ; came  to  this  State  in  1839, 
and  engaged  in  the  hardware  business,  at  Cold  Spring, 
Putnam  county,  where  he  has  since  resided. 

Mr.  Pelton  has  always  enjoyed  a well-deserved  popu- 
larity in  the  section  of  the  State  where  he  lives,  having 
been  several  times  elected  Supervisor,  although  residing 
in  one  of  the  strongest  Democratic  towns  in  the  State. 
In  1857,  he  was  chosen  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Su- 
pervisors, and  was  a member  of  the  Assembly  in  1859, 
where  he  served  with  considerable  distinction  and 
ability,  both  on  the  floor  of  the  House,  and  as  a mem- 


260 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ber  of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Militia  and  Public 
Defense.  He  has  held  many  other  places  of  trust,  and 
has  always  proven  himself  faithful  to  the  public  inter- 
est. In  politics,  he  was  formerly  a Whig,  and  is  now 
a Republican.  Though  not  a fluent  speaker,  he  is 
fully  able  to  successfully  vindicate  his  principles,  and 
to  represent  the  interests  of  his  constituents. 

Mr.  Pelton  was  married  to  his  very  excellent  wife. 
Miss  Almira  Clark,  of  Hartford,  in  1839,  and  attends 
the  Baptist  Church,  of  which  his  wife  is  a member. 
He  is  a kind-hearted,  generous,  and  agreeable  gentle- 
man, and  is,  personally,  as  well  as  politically,  one  of 
the  most  popular  men  in  the  district  in  which  he  re- 
sides. There  is  scarcely  a doubt,  that  when  the  elec- 
tive franchise  is  once  extended  to  the  ladies,  Mr.  Pel- 
ton  will  be  promptly  elevated  to  the  highest  honors  in 
the  country. 


ALPHONSO  PEKKY. 

Dr.  Perry  was  born  on  the  26th  of  March,  1806,  in 
Stephentown,  Rensselaer  co.,  N.  Y.,  and  is  a descend- 
ant of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers.  His  father,  who  died  in 
1848,  in  Clarkson,  Monroe  county,  where  the  subject 
of  this  sketch  now  resides,  was  a native  of  Rhode 
Island,  and  his  mother,  who  is  still  living,  at  the  age 
of  seventy,  was  born  in  Stephentown. 

Dr.  Perry  removed,  with  his  parents,  into  Monroe 
county,  in  1822.  He  received  an  academical  education, 
and  studied  medicine  with  Dr.  McIntyre,  at  Palmyra, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


261 


with  whom  he  remained  eighteen  months,  after  which 
he  graduated,  in  1830,  from  the  College  of  Physicians 
and  Surgeons,  in  the  city  of  New  York.  He  was  then 
married,  in  the  same  year,  to  Miss  Marietta  Platt,  and 
at  once  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession, 
which  he  successfully  pursued  till  1845,  when  he  turned 
his  attention  to  farming.  He  has  filled  numerous  town 
offices,  including  that  of  Supervisor,  in  1844  ; and  w^as 
elected  to  the  Assembly  of  1859  by  a majority  of  over 
one  thousand.  He  served  with  considerable  distinc* 
tion  in  that  body,  occupying  the  position  of  Chairman 
of  the  standing  Committee  on  Erection  and  Division 
of  Towns  and  Counties,  and  was  re-elected,  at  the  last 
election,  by  an  increased  majority.  His  first  vote  was 
cast  for  Old  Hickory,’’  in  1828,  and  he  was  always  a 
fearless,  unswerving  Democrat,  till  1848,  when  he  en- 
listed under  the  standard  of  Mr.  Van  Buren.  From  that 
time  forward,  he  took  but  comparatively  very  little  in- 
terest in  politics,  until  the  inauguration  of  the  Repub- 
lican movement,  and  since  then  has  been  a zealous  and 
consistent  member  of  that  party.  He  is  a quiet,  though 
intelligent  and  efficient  man,  and  is  prompt,  decided, 
and  strictly  honest  and  impartial  in  the  discharge  of 
his  public  duties.  He  attends  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
and  is  strongly  in  favor  of  the  enactment  of  a strin- 
gent prohibitory  liquor  law. 


262 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


JOHN  PETTIT. 

There  are  but  few  more  quiet,  unostentatious,  and 
useful  men  in  either  branch  of  the  Legislature  than 
Mr.  Pettit,  and  his  good,  sound  common-sense  and 
Quaker  education  have  given  him  a high  degree  of 
personal  and  political  popularity.  He  was  born  on 
the  2d  of  March,  1818,  in  the  town  of  Hempstead, 
Queens  county,  N.  Y.,  and  traces  his  ancestry  as  far 
back  as  the  days  of  the  French  Huguenots  in  this 
country.  His  father,  Joseph  Pettit,  is  still  living,  at 
an  advanced  age,  and  his  mother  died  a few  years 
since.  His  maternal  grand-father.  Major  Hendrickson, 
was  a man  of  high  character  and  respectability,  and 
did  good  service  in  the  cause  of  American  independ- 
ence during  the  Revolution.  ^ 

Mr.  Pettit  received  only  a limited  common-school 
education,  having  been  left  almost  entirely  upon  his 
own  resources  in  its  acquisition,  and  has  always  been 
a farmer,  engaged  extensively  in  the  dairy  business. 
He  has  held  various  unimportant  town  ojBSces,  including 
that  of  Justice  of  the  Peace,  which  he  has  filled  during 
the  past  six  years.  He  has  always  been  a firm  and 
consistent  Democrat,  but  although  a party  man,  has 
never  been  a very  active  politician,  preferring  to  de- 
vote his  w'hole  time  and  attention  to  the  successful 
prosecution  of  his  own  private  business.  He  was 
nominated  for  his  present  position  without  his  know- 
ledge or  solicitation,  and  defeated  his  opponent  and 

I 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


2r)3 


predecessor  in  the  Assembly,  the  Hon.  Robert  L. 
Meeks,  by  a majority  of  one  hundred  and  eighty. 

Mr.  Pettit  was  married  on  the  26th  of  May,  1846,  to 
Miss  Jennett  A.  Smith,  by  whom  he  has  three  child- 
ren, and  is  strongly  inclined  toward  the  Quaker  re- 
ligion. 


JOSEPH  H.  PLUMB. 

Mr.  Plumb  is  a native  of  Portage  county,  Ohio, 
where  he  was  born,  on  the  10th  of  March,  1819.  His 
father,  Ralph  Plumb,  was  born  in  Oneida  county,  N.  Y., 
and  removed  to  the  city  of  Buffalo,  in  1815.  After  a 
temporary  absence,  he  came  back  into  Erie  county, 
and  located  in  the  village  of  Lodi,  now  Gowanda, 
where  he  has  continued  to  reside,  up  to  the  present 
time.  He  was  the  pioneer  merchant  of  that  place  ; has 
been  Supervisor  some  twelve  or  fifteen  years  ; was  a 
representative  in  the  Legislature  of  1835,  from  that 
county,  and  occupied  the  position  of  Sheriff  during  the 
years  1844,  ^45,  and  ^46. 

Mr.  Plumb  came  to  the  State  of  New  York  in  1819, 
and  located  with  his  father  at  Gowanda,  in  the  year 
1823.  He  received  an  academical  education,  and  has 
occupied  the  position  in  the  business  world,  of  mer- 
chant, farmer,  and  miller.  During  the.  years  1851  and 
^58,  he  was  Supervisor  of  the  town  in  which  he  resides, 
and  was  elected  to  the  present  Assembly  by  a flatter- 


264 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ing  majority.  He  was  formerly  a Whig  of  the  na- 
tional, conservative  stamp,  and  remained  firm  in  his 
devotion  to  that  party  until  its  disorganization,  when 
he  became  an  American.  He  was  married  in  August, 
1842,  to  Loretta  J.  Rumsey,  and  attends  the  Presby- 
terian Church. 

Mr.  Plumb  is  an  active,  correct,  industrious  busi- 
ness man,  and  is  now  engaged  in  the  mercantile  trade 
with  his  father,  under  the  firm  of  R.  Plumb  & Son. 


ELIAS  POND. 

Mr.  Pond  is  a tall,  well-formed,  venerable-looking 
old  gentleman,  with  a head  whitened  by  the  snows  of 
nearly  sixty  winters,  and  is  a native  of  Vermont.  He 
belongs  to  the  ^^silk  stocking”  aristocracy,  apparently 
looking  down  upon  the  poorer  class  of  people  with  a 
constitutional  contempt,  and  in  giving  his  occupation, 
on  the  Clerk’s  book,  sets  himself  down  as  a gentle- 
man.” This  is  his  second  term  in  the  Assembly,  he 
having  been  a member  a year  ago,  but,  as  yet,  he  has 
neither  exhibited  any  more  than  an  ordinary  degree  of 
talent,  nor  done  any  thing  to  distinguish  himself  among 
the  great  mass  of  his  legislative  compeers.  His  place 
of  residence  is  the  city  of  Rochester,  where  he  former- 
ly did  a small  business  in  the  banking  line,  being  one 
“who  loves  no  music  but  the  dollar’s  clink,”  and  is 
said  to  sustain  the  reputation  of  a respectable  old 
gentleman. 


fetOGRAPHtCAL  SKETCfiES* 


265 


SHOTWELL  POWELL 

Mr.  Powell  Was  born  on  the  3d  of  October,  1808,  in 
the  town  of  Clinton,  Dutchess  county,  N.  Y.,  and  is  of 
English  and  Welsh  descent.  His  father,  James  Pow» 
ell,  who  Was  a native  of  New  Jersey,  died  in  1811,  at 
the  age  of  fifty-one,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden 
name  Was  Martha  Townsend,  died  in  1854,  at  the  ad* 
vanned  age  of  eighty-four. 

Mr.  Powell  received  a commomschool  education,  and 
has  always  been  successfully  engaged  in  farming.  He 
removed  from  Dutchess  county,  in  1844,  to  South  Bris- 
tol, Ontario  county,  where  he  has  always  since  been  a 
prominent  and  influential  resident.  He  has  held  va- 
rious town  offices,  and  was  elected  to  the  Assembly  of 
1859  by  over  five  hundred  majority.  He  was  re-elect- 
ed at  the  last  election  by  about  the  same  majority,  and 
during  the  last  and  present  session  of  the^Legislature, 
has  given  unmistakable  evidence  of  Ms  ability  and 
industry  as  a representative.  He  was  formerly  a 
Democrat,  till  1840,  when  he  became  a Whig,  and  in 
1856  joined  the  Republicans.  He  was  married  in  1835 
to  Miss  Sarah  Clapp,  by  whom  he  has  three  children, 
and  belongs  to  the  Society  of  Friends  or  Quakers.  He 
is  a man  of  Strong,  practical  common-sense,  a staunch 
friend  of  the  cause  of  temperance  ; a shrewd,  calculat- 
ing, though  quiet  and  Unassuming  politician,  and  acts 
more  and  speaks  less  than  men  generally. 

12 


266 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


PETER  C.  REGAN. 

Mr.  Regan  was  born  on  the  5th  of  December,  1823^ 
on  Pike  street,  in  the  city  of  New  York,  His  family 
are  Irish,  though  his  ancestors  emigrated  to  the  north 
of  Ireland  from  Spain,  about  the  time  of  the  conquest 
of  Scipio.  His  parents  were  Edward  and  Mary  Chris- 
ty Regan,  residents  of  New  York,  the  former  of  whom 
died  in  1831,  and  the  latter  in  1842. 

At  the  breaking  out  of  the  Mexican  war,  in  1846, 
Mr.  Regan  joined  Captain  SwifPs  Company  of  Engh 
neers  at  West  Point,  which  afterwards  served  with 
so  much  distinction  under  Captain  G.  W.  Smith,  noW 
Street  Commissioner  in  the  city  of  New  York,  and  set 
sail  for  the  scene  of  hostilities  in  September  of  that 
year.  They  landed  at  Brazos  Santiago  in  October, 
during  the  armistice  which  followed  the  battle  of  Mon- 
terey. The  company  was  then  sent  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Rio  Grande  ; but  the  order  was  countermanded,  and 
the  division  was  ordered  back  to  General  Taylor,  it 
being  supposed  that  Santa  Anna  intended  to  give  bat- 
tle at  some  place  near  Victoria.  The  division  under 
General  Patterson,  to  which  Mr.  Regan  belonged, 
reached  this  place  in  ten  days,  travelling  by  forced 
marches  a distance  of  three  hundred  miles,  and  arrived 
on  the  same  day  on  which  General  Taylor  came  in 
from  Saltillo.  Lieutenant  Ritchie,  the  bearer  of  dis- 
patches, having  been  lassoed  as  he  was  going  from 
Taylor  to  meet  Patterson,  his  papers  showed  Santa 
Anna  that  the  Americans  had  been  ordered  to  concen- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


26T 


ttate  at  Victoria,  and  would  be  ready  for  him.  He 
then  resolved  to  return,  and  recover  the  territory 
which  had  been  wrested  from  Mexico  at  such  an  ex- 
pense of  blood  and  treasure.  But  General  Taylor  was 
too  quick  for  him,  and  returning  to  Saltillo,  gave  bat- 
tle at  Buena  Vista, 

The  army  then  moved  onward  to  Tampico^  five 
hundred  miles  from  Matamoras.  The  company  to 
which  Mr.  Began  belonged,  now  under  the  command  of 
Major  Henry,  was  required  to  travel  two  days  in  ad- 
vance of  Gen.  Twiggs,  and  open  a road  for  the  troops. 
The  labor  was  severe  — fording  rivers,  bridging 
streams,  and  making  a passable  road  through  chap- 
peral,  and  over  mountains— and  Mr.  Regan,  who  was 
ambitious,  over-worked  himself,  and  was  left  at  Tam- 
pico to  die.  As  warm  weather  approached^  he  became 
better,  and  joined  the  army  at  Vera  Gruz,  shortly  after 
the  bombardment  of  that  place.  He  then  went  with 
the  advanced  guard,  under  Gen.  Worth,  to  Puebla. 
Vfhen  the  army  departed  for  the  city  of  Mexico,  he 
was  left  behind  with  the  garrison,  under  Gen.  Childs. 
They  were  besieged  for  sixty  days  by  the  Mexicans. 
The  advance  of  Gen.  Lane,  and  his  defeat  of  Santa 
Anna  at  the  battle  of  Huamantla,  compelled  the  latter 
to  raise  the  siege.  The  garrison  then  rejoined  their 
fellow-soldiers  at  Mexico. 

Peace  being  declared,  Mr.  Regan  returned  to  West 
Point,  and  completed  his  education  as  a Civil  and 
Military  Engineer.  At  the  expiration  of  his  enlist- 
ment, he  fixed  his  residence  at  Buttermilk  Falls,  in 


268 


BIOGIIAPHICAL  SKEt-CBBS. 


Orange  county,  and  engaged  in  the  business  of  build-^ 
ing.  In  1853,  he  married  Miss  Phebe  Jane,  daughter 
of  Godfrey  Dusenberry,  of  that  place.  He  was  elected 
Supervisor  of  the  town  of  Cornwall,  at  the  last  town 
election,  and,  in  politics,  is  a Democrat. 


CHARLES  RICHARDSON. 

Mr.  Eichardsen  is  a natire  of  the  town  of  Fairfax, 
Franklin  county,  Vermont,  and  was  born  on  the  5th  of 
October,  1814.  His  parents  were  both  New  England- 
ers, and  his  mother,  whose  name,  before  marriage,  was 
Lucinda  Taylor,  and  who  was  left  a poor  widow,  in 
1816,  with  thr^e  small  children,  is  still  living,  at  the 
advanced  age  of  seventy-one. 

On  the  6th  of  July,  1822,  Mr.  Eichardson  removed, 
with  his  mother,  to  Morristown,  New  York,  on  the 
shores  of  Black  Lake,  where  she  still  resides,  a widow, 
never  having  married  the  second  time.  In  1832,  he 
finished  his  education,  which  is  confined  to  the  custom- 
ary English  branches,  at  the  St.  Lawrence  Academy, 
in  Jefferson  county,  and  besides  teaching  some  seven 
years,  has  since  then  always  been  an  energetic  and 
successful  farmer.  Prior  to  the  organization  of  the^ 
Eepublican  party  he  was  identified  with  the  Whigs, 
and  has  filled  various  town  offices,  including  that  of 
Justice  of  the  Peace,  which  he  occupied  from  1846‘ 
until  ^56,  and  that  of  Superintendent  of  Common 
Schools,  which  he  held  from  1844  until  ^52.  He’ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


269 


was,  also,  elected  Supervisor  in  185T,  and  still  occu- 
pies that  position. 

Mr.  Richardson  was  married  on  the  22d  of  January, 
1837,  to  Miss  Susannah  Raught,  and  chiefly  attends 
the  Universalist  Church. 


LORENZO  N.  RIDER 

Mr.  Rider  was  born  on  the  8th  of  October,  1817,  in 
the  then  town  of  Howard,  Steuben  county,  N.  Y.  He  is 
a descendant  of  good,  old  Plymouth  stock.  His  pater- 
nal grand-father,  William  Rider,  who  is  still  living,  at 
the  ripe  old  age  of  ninety-five,  came  from  Rhode 
Island,  and  after  living  a while  in  Saratoga  county, 
finally  settled  in  Steuben  qounty,  where  he  still 
resides.  His  ^maternal  grand-father  was  Dr.  Potter, 
of  Saratoga  county,  a man  of  great  usefulness  and 
eminent  distinction,  in  his  life-time.  His  father,  James 
Rider,  an  honest  and  industrious  farmer,  is  still  living 
in  Steuben  county,  as  is,  also,  his  mother,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Sally  Potter. 

Mr.  Rider  was  educated  in  the  common  schools  of 
his  native  town.  He  was  for  many  years  engaged  in 
teaching  during  the  winter,  and  working  at  farming 
during  the  summer,  and  is  now  quietly  and  success- 
fully pursuing  his  occupation  as  a farmer.  He  has 
held  the  office  of  Justice  of  the  Peace,  two  terms,  em- 
bracing a period  of  eight  years,  and  during  the  past 
three  years  has  been  Supervisor  of  the  town  of  Fre- 


270 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


mont,  where  he  resides.  In  politics,  he  was  formerly 
a strong,  uncompromising,  Henry  Clay  Whig,  casting 
his  first  vote  for  Gen.  Harrison,  as  the  Whig  candh 
date  for  President,  and  is  now  a Kepublican  of  the 
more  conservative  stamp.  He  has  always  been  an 
active  politician,  wielding  a strong  influence  in  the 
local  politics  of  his  own  and  the  adjoining  towns,  and 
was  the  successful  candidate  for  the  position  he  now 
holds  in  the  House,  by  a complimentary  majority.  He 
is  a man  of  much  more  than  ordinary  ability,  having 
strong  common-sense,  and  a sound,  discriminating 
judgment,  and  is  honest,  frank,  and  straight-forward 
in  the  discharge  of  his  representative  duties. 

Mr.  Rider  was  married  in  1840,  to  Miss  Susan  Bray- 
ton,  who  died  in  1845,  and  in  1850,  was  again  married 
to  Miss  Jane  T.  Allen.  He  confines  himself  to  no  par- 
ticular church,  in  his  attendance  upon  religious  wor- 
ship, and  enjoys  a high  deg'ree  of  personal  popularity 
in  the  community  in  which  he  lives. 


I.UCIUS  ROBmSON. 

Mr.  Robinson  is  a native  of  Windham,  Greene  coun- 
ty, N.  Y.,  and  was  born  on  the  4th  of  November,  1810. 
He  is  a lineal  descendant  of  the  Rev.  John  Robinson, 
from  whose  church  the  Plymouth  Colony  sprung.  His 
father,  Eli  P.  Robinson,  was  a farmer  in  the  town  of 
Windham,  and  was  among  its  first  settlers,  having 
emigrated  from  Connecticut  very  early  in  life.  He 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


211 


was,  also,  a captain  of  militia  during  the  whole  of  the 
war  of  1812,  and  served  at  Sackett^s  Harbor  and  on 
Long  Island. 

Mr.  Robinson  was  educated  at  the  Delaware  Acade- 
my, at  Delhi,  Delaware  county,  N.  Y.  He  first  studied 
law  with  Gen.  Root,  and  subsequently  with  the  Hon. 
Amasa  J.  Parker,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
1832.  He  then  commenced  the  practice  of  the  law  at 
Catskill,  Greene  county,  N.  Y.,  in  1833,  and  during 
the  years  1831,  ’38,  and  ’39,  was  District  Attorney  of 
that  county.  In  1839  he  removed  to  the  city  of  New 
York,  to  practise  his  profession,  and  for  two  or  three 
years  furnished  all  the  leading  articles  of  the  New 
York  Sun,  He  has,  also,  been  a large  contributor  to 
other  journals.  In  1843,  he  was  appointed  Master  in 
Chancery  by  Gov.  Bouck,  and  was  re-appointed  by 
Gov.  Wright  in  1846,  holding  the  position  until  the 
Court  of  Chancery  ceased  to  exist.  He  continued  in 
the  successful  practice  of  his  profession  in  New  York 
until  1855,  when,  his  health  failing  in  consequence  of 
excessive  labor,  he  retired  to  the  county  of  Chemung, 
where  he  has  always  since  been  a resident.  He  stands 
high  in  the  community  in  which  he  lives,  as  a man  of 
intelligence  and  superior  legal  ability,  and  was  chosen 
a member  of  the  present  Legislature  by  a large  ma- 
jority. In  politics,  he  was  always  a Democrat  of  the 
Silas  Wright  and  Freesoil  school,  until  the  formation 
of  the  Republican  party,  and  since  then  has  been  one 
of  its  most  strenuous  and  unyielding  supporters. 
Intellectually,  at  least,  he  is  universally  acknow- 


2t2 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


lodged,  at  Albany,  to  be  one  of  the  strongest,  if  not  the 
strongest  man,  in  the  House,  and  wields  a great  influ- 
ence in  all  its  deliberations. 

Mr.  Robinson  was  married  in  1833,  to  Miss  Eunice 
Osborn,  of  Windham,  and  enjoys  a high  degree  of  per- 
sonal, as  well  as  political  popularity. 


DAVID  B.  ST.  JOHN. 

Mr.  St.  John  is  a native  of  Saratoga  county,  N.  Y., 
where  he  was  born  on  the  9th  of  January,  1803.  His 
father,  Benjamin  St.  John,  who  was  of  English  descent, 
died  near  the  city  of  Schenectady,  on  the  9th  of  May, 
1815. 

Mr.  St.  John  is  emphatically  a self-educated  and 
self-made  man,  having  attended  school  only  a few 
months  after  he  was  eleven  years  of  age,  and  has 
mostly  followed  the  occupation  of  a farmer,  although 
extensively  engaged  in  surveying,  during  the  past  ten 
or  fifteen  years.  He  is  a man  of  sound  sense,  and  a 
good  mathematical  mind,  and  has,  also,  transacted 
considerable  legal  business,  during  the  past  few  years. 
He  has  filled  various  town  offices,  including  that  of 
Supervisor,  which  he  successfully  filled  from  1835 
till  ^45,  and  occupied  the  position  of  Justice  of  the 
Peace,  some  fifteen  years.  He  was  a member  of  the 
Constitutional  Convention  of  1846,  and  occupied  a 
prominent  and  influential  position  in  the  Legislature 
of  1849.  He  was,  also,  a member  of  the  Assembly  in 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


273 


1859,  where  he  occupied  a prominent  position  on  the 
Standing  Committee  on  Claims,  and  introduced  the  bill 
appropriating  $200,000  for  the  completion  of  the  Sus- 
quehanna Railroad,  which,  chiefly  through  his  untiring 
exertions  in  its  behalf,  passed  both  branches  of  the 
Legislature,  but  which  was  subsequently  vetoed  by  the 
Governor.  He  was  re-elected,  at  the  last  election,  by 
an  increased  majority,  and  resumes  his  seat  in  the 
House  as  the  unyielding  friend  of  every  legal  measure 
that  is  calculated  to  secure  the  speedy  completion  of 
the  Susquehanna  Road.  In  politics,  he  always  voted 
the  Democratic  ticket,  till  the  fall  of  1856,  when  that 
party,  in  his  judgment,  abandoned  some  of  its  cardinal 
principles,  and  when  he  became  a staunch,  fearless, 
and  independent  Republican. 

Mr.  St.  John  was  married  in  1828,  to  Miss  Polly 
Doming,  and  usually  attends  the  Universalist  Church. 
He  is  a man  of  influence  and  high  respectability  in 
Otsego  county,  where  he  resides,  and  is  one  gf  the 
most  quiet,  unostentatious,  industrious,  and  efficient 
members  of  the  present  Legislature* 


JAMES  SAVAGE. 

Dr.  Savage  is  one  of  the  oldest,  most  valuable,  and 
substantial  men  in  either  branch  of  the  Legislature, 
and  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Salem,  Washington 
county,  N.  Y.,  where  he  was  born,  on  the  26th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1798.  He  is  descended  from  genuine  Anglo- 
12* 


274 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES, 


Saxon  stock,  though  it  is  supposed  by  some,  that  his 
great-grand-father  came  from  Ireland.  He  is  the  only 
brother  of  the  Kev.  John  A.  Savage,  D.I).,  President 
of  Carrol  ^ College,  at  Waukesha,  Wisconsin,  and 
is  a cousin  of  ex-Chief  Justice  Savage,  of  Utica. 
Both  his  father  and  mother,  Abram  Savage  and  Mary 
Adams,  are  now  dead,  the  former  having  died  in  the 
fifty-third  year  of  his  age,  at  Salem,  on  the  28th  of 
June,  ^1829,  and  the  latter,  in  the  forty-fifth  year  of  her 
age,  at  the  same  place,  on  the  22d  of  February,  1820. 

Dr.  Savage  received  a classical  education  at  the 
Washington  Academy,  in  his  native  town,  and  studied 
medicine  at  the  same  place,  with  Asa  Fitch,  M.D. 
Subsequently,  he  attended  medical  lectures  at  the 
Medical  College  in  Herkimer  county,  N,  Y.,  and  on  the 
12th  of  August,  1820,  located  himself  in  the  town  of 
Argyle,  in  his  native  county,  where  he  has  always 
since  been  a successful  practising  physician.  He  has 
never  been  ambitious  of  political  preferment,  preferring 
to  devote  himself  wholly  to  his  profession,  and,  with 
the  exception  of  having  been  Supervisor  of  the  town 
in  which  he  resides,  during  1835  and  ^36,  never  occu- 
pied any  prominent  public  position,  until  his  election 
to  the  present  Assembly.  His  first  vote  was  cast 
about  the  time  of  the  organization  of  the  Whig  party, 
and  he  adhered  firmly  to  it,  throughout  its  entire  ex- 
istence. Since  then,  he  has  been  a Kepublican,  of  the 
National  Conservative  school,  and  although  opposed 
to  the  extension  of  slavery  into  territory  now  free,  is 
an  uncompromising  friend  of  -the  Constitution  and  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


275 


Union.  He  enjoys  a high  degree  of  personal  and 
political  popularity  wherever  he  is  known,  and  comes 
to  the  Legislature  by  a majority  of  over  fourteen 
hundred. 

Dr.  Savage  w^as  married  on  the  7th  of  May,  1829, 
to  Miss  Jane  King  McLean,  of  Jackson,  N.  Y,,  who 
died  on  the  26th  of  December,  1833,  and  on  the  8th  of 
September,  1835,  he  married  Miss  Jane  M,  Ferine,  of 
the  same  town.  He  has  been  a member  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  for  forty  years,  and  during  the  last 
twenty  years,  has  been  Secretary  of  the  Washington 
County  Bible  Society. 


BERNARD  D.  SEARLES. 

Mr.  Searles  was  born  on  the  22d  of  August,  1815, 
in  the  town  of  Colerain,  Franklin  county.  Mass.  He 
is  of  English  and  French  descent.  His.father,  James 
Searles,  died  in  April,  1847,  at  the  age  of  seventy-four, 
and  his  mother,  whose  name  before  marriage  was  Abby 
Thurston,  died  in  March,  1833,  at  the  age  of  fifty-four. 
They  both  died,  and  are  buried,  in  Bellville,  Jefferson 
county,  N.  Y. 

In  1826,  at  the  early  age  of  eleven,  Mr.  Searles 
emigrated,  with  his  parents,  to  New  York,  and  after 
living  three  years  in  Oneida  county,  settled  with 
them  in  the  town  of  Ellisburgh,  Jefferson  county, 
where  he  has  always  since  been  a resident,  with  the 


276 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES, 


exception  of  some  four  years,  passed  in  the  adjoining' 
town  of  Henderson.  His  education  was  limited  to  the 
common  schools  of  his  native  State  and  New  York, 
and  he  was  brought  up  a farmer,  which  he  followed 
until  1847,  when  he  removed  to  the  village  of  Ellis- 
burgh,  and  commenced  business  as  a merchant.  Since 
then,  he  has  been  quite  successful  in  his  mercantile 
pursuits,  and  by  strict  integrity,  ceaseless  attention 
to  business,  and  constant  habits  of  frugality,  has  been 
able  to  acquire  enough  of  this  world’s  goods  to  be 
denominated  among  his  neighbors  a ‘‘  forehanded 
man.”  During  the  first  seven  years,  after  he  was 
twenty-one  years  of  age,  he  worked  at  farming  for  one 
man  by  the  year,  at  the  annual  price  of  $150,  or  a 
little  less  than  three  dollars  a week.  He  then,  on  the 
29th  of  December,  1841,  married  Miss  Sophia  A., 
daughter  of  Elisha  Harvey,  of  Watertown,  and  pur- 
chased a small  farm,  in  Henderson.  He  never  occu- 
pied any  important  public  position  until  he  became 
a member  of  the  present  Legislature,  but  has  al- 
ways been  a great  reader,  and  possesses  the  very 
qualities  of  mind  which  tend  to  make  a good  repre- 
sentative. Although  his  opportunities  for  a finished 
education  were  small,  his  practical  knowledge  is  so 
extensive,  and  he  has  acquired  so  much  from  his  con- 
stant intercourse  with  his  fellow-men,  that  he  would 
readily  pass  for  a man  of  more  than  ordinary  acquire- 
ments from  books. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Searles  was  formerly  of  the  old 
Whig  school,  and  he  retained  his  full  connection  with 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


211 


that  party  as  long  as  it  had  an  existence,  when  he  joined 
the  Republican  party,  which  he  steadfastly  believes 
contains  within  its  scope  of  policy  all  that  is  desirable 
to  preserve  or  perpetuate  in  this  Republic.  His  whole 
life  abounds  in  that  good,  old-fashioned  New  England 
^perience  which  time  has  shown  to  make  men  equal 
to  any  emergency  in  life,  qualifying  them,  as  well  f r 
lives  of  earnest  labor  and  uncomplaining  sacrifices  in 
the  path  of  duty,  as  for  those  higher  walks  where 
statesmen,  like  Daniel  Webster  and  Silas  Wright,  once 
trod. 


JAMES  M.  SEE  VIS. 

Mr.  Servis  was  born  on  the  25th  of  November,  1811, 
in  the  town  of  Am  well,  Hunterdon  county.  New  Jersey, 
and  is  of  German  descent.  He  belongs  to  an  energetic, 
industrious,  and  respectable  family,  and  is  the  brother 
of  the  Hon.  Garreft  Servis,  who  was  formerly  a mem- 
ber of  the  New  Jersey  Legislature,  and  Sheriff  of 
Hunterdon  county,  in  that  State.  His  father,  John 
Servis,  is  still  living,  at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty, 
but  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Catharine 
Conover,  died  in  December,  1831,  at  the  age  of  forty- 
nine. 

Mr.  Servis  was  educated  in  the  common  schools  of 
his  native  county,  and  in  November,  1831,  came  to 
New  York,  and  located  at  Auburn,  Cayuga  county,  in 
that  State.  He  left  home  at  the  age  of  fifteen,  to  learn 
the  mason^s  trade,  and  with  the  exception  of  some 


2t8 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


three  years,  followed  that  occupation,  until  about  ten 
years  ago,  since  which  time  he  has  been  successfully 
engaged  in  farming.  He  was  one  of  the  keepers  at 
the  Auburn  Statens  Prison  from  May,  1845,  until 
March,  1848,  but  never  held  any  important  public 
office  until  his  election  to  the  present  House,  except 
that  of  Supervisor  of  the  town  in  which  he  lives, 
which  he  has  occupied  during  the  past  four  years. 
Until  the  organization  of  the  Kepublican  party,  he  was 
always  a zealous  and  uncompromising  Democrat,  of 
the  Freesoil  school,  but  he  has  always  been  better 
known  as  a substantial  and  successful  business  man 
than  an  active  politician.  His  position  in  the  Assem- 
bly is  that  of  a man  of  good,  sound,  practical  judg- 
ment, persevering  industry,  and  an  honest  and  stead- 
fast determination  to  subserve  the  interests  of  his 
constituents  quietly,  though  perseveringly,  and  to  the 
very  best  of  his  ability. 

Mr.  Servis  was  married  on  the  14th  of  May,  1833, 
to  Miss  Mary  Ann,  daughter  of  Benjamin  Quick,  of 
Cayuga  county,  and  is  a member  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church. 


JOHN  I.  SLINGERLAND. 

Mr.  Slingerland  was  born  in  1804,  in  the  town  of  » 
Bethlehem,  Albany  county,  N.  Y.,  and  his  ancestors 
came  to  America  from  Holland.  His  father,  John 
A.  Slingerland,  died  in  1850,  in  the  eighty-fifth 


BlOGllAPHlCAL  SKETCHES. 


279 


year  of  his  age,  and  his  mother  is  still  living,  at  the 
good  old  age  of  eighty^four. 

Mr.  Slingerland  was  educated  in  the  common  schools 
of  his  native  place,  and  was  brought  up  a farmer, 
which  has  always  been  his  chief  occupation.  He  has 
held  various  town  offices,  and  was  elected  to  the  Legis- 
ture  in  1843.  He  was,  subsequently,  elected  to  Com 
gross  in  1847,  and  is  now  again  a member  of  the  lower 
\ branch  of  the  Legislature,  to  which  he  was  elected  at 
the  last  election,  by  a majority  of  only  twenty  votes. 
He  was  formerly  a Whig,  adhering  firmly  and  un- 
yieldingly to  the  doctrines  and  policy  of  that  party 
until  it  abandoned  its  organization,  when  he  became 
an  active  and  soiiiewhat  influential  Republican.  He 
has,  also,  been  quite  industrious  in  the  cause  of  the 
Anti-renters,  and  is  one  of  the  master-spirits  of  that 
party  in  Albany,  and  the  adjoining  counties.  He  is 
a man  of  considerable  personal  popularity,  and  has  a 
faculty  of  making  himself  perfectly  agreeable  to  all 
with  whom  he  comes  in  contact. 

Mr.  Slingerland  was  married  in  1830,  to  Miss  Sally 
Hall,  and  belongs  to  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church, 


ANDREW  SMITH. 

Mr.  Smith  is  one  of  the  most  popular  and  useful  men 
in  either  branch  of  the  Legislature.  He  is  equally 
popular  and  influential  in  the  district  which  he  repre- 
sents, and  succeeded  as  the  Democratic  candidate  for 


280 


bioghaphical  sketches, 


the  Assembly,  at  the  last  election,  by  a majority  of 
two  hundred,  over  the  combined  vote  of  the  Mozart 
Hall  and  Republican  candidates.  He  has  always  been 
a strong*,  uncompromising  Democrat  of  the  Tammany 
Hall  school,  ranking  high  among  the  most  prominent 
and  influential  politicians  in  the  city  of  New  York,  and 
lacked  only  a few  votes  of  receiving  the  nomination 
as  a candidate  for  State  Prison  Inspector,  by  the  last 
Democratic  State  Convention,  at  Syracuse.  Still,  he 
has  never  been  ambitious  of  political  preferment, 
and  never  held  any  public  position  until  his  elec- 
tion to  the  present  House. 

Mr.  Smith  was  born  in  the  county  of  Cavan,  Ire- 
land, on  the  23d  of  December,  1822,  and  is,  therefore, 
thirty-seven  years  of  age.  His  parents  both  died  in 
the  old  country,  and  he  came  to  America  in  1844.  His 
education  was  acquired  entirely  in  the  common  schools 
of  his  native  country,  and  his  business,  since  his  arri- 
val in  this  country,  has  been  chiefly  that  of  a grocer, 
in  which  he  has  been  successfully  and  extensively  en- 
gaged. He  is  wholly  a self-made  man,  having  entered 
upon  his  career  of  active  life  without  any  encourage- 
ment whatever,  and  has  succeeded  in  all  his  business 
enterprises  far  beyond  his  most  sanguine  expectations. 
He  possesses  a superior  degree  of  general  intelligence 
and  legislative  ability,  and  discharges  the  duties  of 
his  position  with  industry,  impartiality,  and  a scrupu- 
lous regard  for  the  best  interests  of  his  constituents. 

Mr.  Smith  was  married  on  the  23d  of  September, 
1841,  to  Miss  Ellen  McCaffrey,  and  possesses,  in  a 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


281 


more  than  ordinary  degree,  all  the  elements  of  per- 
sonal, as  well  as  political,  popularity. 


HIRAM  SMITH,  2d. 

Mr.  Smith  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Hanover, 
Chautauqua  county,  N.  Y.,  and  was  born  on  the  25th 
of  October,  1819.  His  mother,  who  died  in  April, 
1852,  was  a native  of  the  State  of  New  York,  and  his 
father,  Rodney  B.  Smith,  who  is  still  living,  at  the 
advanced  age  of  sixty-one,  was  born  in  Massachusetts. 

Mr.  Smith  attended  the  common  schools  of  his  native 
county  until  1836,  when  he  passed  some  two  years  at 
the  Fredonia  Academy.  He  was  educated  for  no  par- 
ticular calling,  and  during  the  past  fifteen  years  has 
been  extensively  engaged  in  the  mercantile,  milling, 
and  distilling  business.  He  has,  from  time  to  time, 
been  Town  Clerk  of  his  native  town,  where  he  still 
resides,  and  has  been  Supervisor  during  five  success- 
ive years.  He  was  always  a Democrat,  of  the  radical 
school,  voting  for  Mr.  Yan  Buren  for  the  Presidency 
in  1848,  and  in  1856  became  thoroughly  identified 
with  the  Republican  party.  He  was  married  on  the 
10th  of  September,  1844,  to  Melissa  P.  Love,  of  the 
town  of  Hanover,  and  confines  himself,  in  his  attend- 
ance  upon  divine  worship,  to  no  particular  church  or 
denomination.  Mr.  Smith  is  a man  of  influence  and 
high  standing  in  the  community  in  which  he  resides, 


282 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


and  was  the  successful  candidate  in  his  district,  for 
the  position  he  now  occupies  in  the  House,  by  a ma- 
jority of  upwards  of  eight  hundred. 


JAMES  M.  SMITH. 

Mr.  Smith  was  born  on  the  5th  of  September,  1813, 
in  the  town  of  Marcellus,  Onondaga  county,  N.  Y. 
He  is  of  English  extraction.  His  father,  Amasa  Smith, 
died  on  the  20th  of  December,  1843,  at  the  age  of  six- 
ty-eight,  and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Mercy  Burroughs,  died  on  the  24th  of  November,  1846, 
at  the  age  of  sixty-seven. 

Mr.  Smith  passed  three  terms  at  the  Springville 
Academy,  Erie  county,  N.  Y.,  but  was  chiefly  edu- 
cated in  the  common  schools  of  his  native  county. 
He  subsequently  taught  some  time  himself,  but 
has  since  been  principally  engaged  in  farming.  He 
was  elected  Supervisor  of  the  town  of  Mansfield, 
in  1840,  holding  the  position  during  three  success- 
ive years  ; was  again  elected  in  1856,  and  has 
since  held  the  position  up  to  the  present  time.  He 
was,  also.  Inspector  of  Common  Schools  in  1840,  and 
held  the  office  until  it  was  abolished.  In  1843,  he  was 
chosen  Clerk  of  the  Board  of  Supervisox’s  of  Cattaraugus 
county,  and  in  1853  was  elected  Superintendent  of  the 
^Poor,  which  office  he  held  three  years.  In  politics,  he 
was  a Whig,  from  the  foundation  to  the  disruption  of 
that  party,  and  is  now  a .Republican,  although  he  was 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


283 


a staunch  American,  of  the  North  American  stamp, 
previous  to  1856, 

Mr.  Smith  was  married  on  the  2tth  of  September, 
1840,  to  Miss  A.  Alsina  Strickland,  who  died  in  1840, 
and  regularljr  attends  the  Methodist  Church.  He  is  an 
industrious,  active,  intelligent,  and  somewhat  talka- 
tive man,  attending  closely  to  his  legislative  duties, 
and  has  shown  himself  a reliable  representative. 


WILLIAM-  M.  SMITH. 

Dr.  Smith  is  a native  of  Allegany  county,  N.  Y., 
where  he  now  resides,  and  is  a successful  practising 
physician  at  Short  Tract,  in  that  county.  He  is  one 
of  the  most  influential  and  popular  men  in  the  district 
which  he  represents  in  the  House,  and  comes  to  the 
Legislature  by  a majority  of  nine  hundred  and  ninety- 
nine. 

Dr.  Smith  is  thirty-four  years  of  age,  and  is  descended 
from  noble  stock.  In  politics,  he  is  consistent  and  un- 
yielding, always  fighting  to  the  ^‘bitter  end’’  for  pure 
Kepublican  principles,  and  never  sets  aside  his  politi- 
cal sentiments  for  the  sake  of  mere  expediency.  He 
is  a gentleman  of  superior  ability — prompt,  clear- 
headed, and  methodical  in  every  thing  he  does  ; is 
unbounded  in  his  hospitality  ; generous  in  his  aid  of 
every  good  work  ; and  is  warm  and  unwavering  in 
his  personal  and  political  friendship.  He  possesses 
fine  social  qualities,  standing  high  in  the  social  circles 


284 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


ill  which  he  moves,  and  is  one  of  the  most  quiet  and 
unostentatious,  though  efficient,  men  in  the  Legisla- 
ture. 

\ 


ABEL  STILSON. 

Mr.  Stilson  is  a native  of  Bennington  county, 
Vermont,  where  he  was  born  on  the  5th  of  January, 
1818.  His  parents  were  of  Scotch  descent,  and  origin- 
ally lived  in  Connecticut.  His  father  died  in  1831,  at 
the  age  of  sixty-five,  in  London,  Canada  West,  where 
he  had  removed  his  family  in  1832,  and  his  mother 
died  in  1841,  in  Avon,  Livingston  county,  N.  Y. 

Mr.  Stilson  came  to  the  State  of  New  York  in  1836, 
and  resided  in  Livingston  and  Genesee  counties  until 
1842,  when  he  removed  to  Orleans  county,  where  he 
is  now  engaged  in  farming.  With  the  exception  of 
a few  months,  which  he  passed,  in  1841,  at  the  Alex- 
ander Classical  School,  in  Genesee  county,  he  never 
attended  school  after  the  age  of  fourteen,  and  received 
only  an  ordinary  English  and  somewhat  classical 
education.  Since  1836,  he  has  been  chiefly  engaged 
in  school-teaching,  and  has  taught  in  the  counties  of 
Livingston  and  Genesee,  and  at  the  Academy  at 
Albion,  Orleans  county.  He  held  the  office  of  Town 
Superintendent,  during  the  years  1846,  Ml,  and  H8, 
and  at  that  time  was  a Whig,  but  he  voted  for  Mr.  Van 
Buren  in  the  latter  year,  and  finding  himself  in  a minor- 
ity, resigned  the  position,  although  having  still  eigh- 
teen months  to  serve.  He  was  then  appointed  Town 


BtOGRAi^HlCAL  SKET^CHE'S. 


289 


Superintendent,  in  Orleans  county^  the  same  year  the 
office  was  abolished,  and  is  now  a Justice  of  the 
Peace.  He  occupies  a high  position  in  the  town 
where  he  resides,  and  was  elected  to  the  present 
House  by  over  five  hundred  majority.  He  is  a gentle- 
man of  more  than  ordinary  ability,  and  is  honest  and 
industrious  in  the  discharge  of  his  legislative  duties. 

Mr.  Stilsonwas  married  on  the  4th  of  July,  1843,  to 
Miss  Caroline  Clark,  and  usually  attends  the  Univer^ 
salist  Church. 

STEPHEN  TABER. 

Mr.  Taber  is  one  of  the  solid  men  of  the  House, 
and  although  modest  and  unassuming  to  an  unusual  de-^ 
gree,  possesses  qualities  which  fit  him  well  for  a legis-^ 
lative  position.  He  is  a plain,  practical  man^ — one 
of  the  people,  and  is  highly  conservative  in  his  views 
on  all  great  questions  of  a State  or  National  character. 
He  has  always  been  a straight-forward,  consistent 
Democrat,  of  the  more  conservative  class,  and  there 
are  but  few  men  in  the  section  of  the  State  where  he 
resides,  who  wield  a greater  influence  among  their 
political  friends.  No  one,  however,  has  been  less 
ambitious  of  political  preferment,  and  he  has  always 
contented  himself  with  quietly  pursuing  his  occupa- 
tion,  as  an  honest  and  industrious  farmer. 

Mr.  Taber  was  born  on  the  tth  of  March,  1821,  at 
Dover,  Dutchess  county,  N.  Y.  His  father,  Thomas 


ferOGRAPmCAL  gKETCHEgi 


S86 

Taber,  an  honest  and  energetic  farmer,  is  still  living, 
at  the  advanced  age  of  seventy-four,  and  his  mother, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Phebe  Titus,  died  in  1824,  at 
a comparatively  early  age.  He  received  an  acade-^ 
mical  education,  and  has  always  been  extensively 
engaged  in  farming.  He  was  elected  to  his  present 
position  by  a complimentary  majority,  and  is,  both 
personally  and  politically,  popular  throughout  the  dis- 
trict he  represents.  In  1845,  he  married  Miss  Eosetta 
Townsend,  and  belongs  to  the  Quaker  Church. 


WILLIAM  TAGGAET. 

Mr.  Taggart  is  a native  of  the  town  of  Le  Eoy,  Jef- 
ferson county>  N.  Y.,  where  he  was  born  on  the  28th 
of  December,  1827.  His  great-great-grand-father,  on 
his  paternal  side,  was  from  the  Isle  of  Man,  and  his 
paternal  great-grand-father  settled  in  Newport,  Rhode 
Island.  His  maternal  grand-father,  Benjamin  Dighton, 
who  came  to  America,  during  the  Revolutionary  strug- 
gle, with  Gen.  Burgoyne,  whom  he  afterwards  de- 
serted, participated  in  the  battle  of  Saratoga,  and 
subsequently  settled  in  Jefferson  county,  where  he 
lived  the  Remainder  of  his  life.  Henry  Taggart,  his 
father,  died  in  1838,  at  the  age  of  fifty,  and  his  mother 
still  survives  him,  at  a good  old  age. 

Mr.  Taggart  was  educated  at  the  Wesleyan  Univer- 
sity, at  Middletown,  Connebticut.  After  graduating 
from  that  institution,  he  went  to  Indiana,  where  he 


felDGRAPfiiCAL  SKETCHES. 


28T 


took  charge  of  an  academy  at  Terre  Hautej  over  which 
he  presided  about  two  years  and  a half.  At  the  end 
of  that  time,  he  went  to  Granada,  Mississippi,  where 
he  remained  in  charge  of  an  academy  about  one  year 
and  six  months.  He  then  returned  to  his  native  town^ 
and  entered  the  law  office  of  Judge  Mullin,  at  Waters 
town,  where  he  remained,  until  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
1855.  Having  then  pursued  his  profession  about  a 
year,  at  Terre  Haute,  Indiana,  he  returned  to  the  old 
homestead,  in  Jefferson  county,  where  he  has  since  been 
successfully  engaged  in  farming.  In  politics,  he  was 
formerly  a Whig,  and  is  now  a Republican,  though, 
until  his  election  to  the  present  House,  he  never  held 
any  important  public  position.  He  is  a gentleman  of 
more  than  ordinary  ability,  discharging  qiiietly  and 
successfully  every  duty  devolving  upon  him  in  his 
new  position,  and  wields  considerable  influence  in  the 
public  and  private  circles  in  which  he  moves^ 


CUMMINGS  H.  TUCKER. 

Mr.  Tucker  is  a native  of  New  Jersey,  and  is  thirty- 
nine  years  of  age.  He  is  engaged  as  a builder  in  the 
city  of  New  York,  where  he  resides,  and  was  elected 
to  the  House  by  a majority  of  six  hundred  and  thirty- 
six.  Politically,  he  is  a Republican,  and  sustains  the 
reputation  of  being  one  of  the  leaders  of  his  party  in 
the  district  from  which  he  hails.  He  is  a gentleman 


288 


BtOGRAI>HtCAL  SKEtCfiBS. 


of  some  personal  and  political  influence  in  the  Legis* 
latilre,  but  is  not  likely  ever  to  become  very  much 
distinguished,  either  for  the  force  of  his  intellectual 
powers,  or  the  brilliancy  of  his  oratory,  He  has  some 
credit  for  being  attentive  and  efficient  in  the  fulfilb 
ment  of  his  duties  as  a legislator,  but  does  not  seem 
to  labor  very  assiduously  to  serve  those  who  have 
honored  him  with  their  confidence  and  their  suffrages, 


' P.  EDWARD  VAN  ALSTYNE. 

Mr;  Van  Alstyne  w'as  born  on  the  1st  of  October, 
1830,  in  that  part  of  the  town  of  Kinderhook  which  now 
constitutes  a part  of  the  town  of  Stuyvesant,  Colum- 
bia county,  N.  Y.  His  father,  Adam  Van  Alstyne, 
who  Was  of  Dutch  descent,  and  who  died  in  1851,  at 
the  age  of  seventy-six,  Was  Collector  of  the  United 
States  Revenue  for  the  Eighth  District,  under  Presi- 
dent Madison,  during  the  continuance  of  the  act  im- 
posing direct  taxation,  and  was  one  of  the  most  useful 
and  influential  men  of  his  day.  His  mother,  whose 
maiden  name  Was  Bain,  originally  McBain,  was  of 
Scotch  descent,  and  died  in  1850,  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
seven, 

Mr,  Van  Alstyne  Was  educated  chiefly  at  the  Kin- 
derhook Academy,  but  passed  some  time  at  the  Acade- 
my at  Lenox,  Mass,,  and,  also,  a year  at  College  Hill, 
Poughkeepsie,  then  under  the  charge  of  the  late  Mr 
Bartlett  ajid  Proh  McGeorge,  After  leaving  school. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


289 


he  engaged  in  farming,  which  he  has  always  since  fol- 
lowed, and  now  owns  one  of  the  finest  farms  in  the 
State  of  New  York.  With  the  exception  of  some  un- 
important town  offices,  he  never  held  any  prominent 
public  position  until  he  became  a member  of  the  pre- 
sent Legislature,  to  which  he  was  elected  by  a majority 
of  over  three  hundred  and  fifty.  He  was  brought  up 
and  schooled  a Democrat  of  the  old  Jeffersonian  stamp, 
and  still  adheres  to  what  he  esteems  the  real  Demo- 
cratic faith,  although  calling  himself,  in  the  ordinary 
political  parlance  of  the  day,  a thorough-going,  active 
Republican.  He  is  a man  of  considerable  legislative 
ability,  and  has  thus  far  proven  himself  honest  and 
faithful  in  the  discharge  of  his  obligations  to  his  con- 
stituents and  to  the  State  at  large. 

Mr.  Van  Alstyne  was  married  in  June,  1854,  to  Miss 
Harriet  Yan  Yranken  Mynderse,  daughter  of  the  late 
Aaron  Mynderse,  of  Schenectady,  and  grand-daughter 
of  the  Rev.  Herman  Yedder,  of  Gallatin,  Columbia 
county,  N.  Y.  He  attends  the  Dutch  Church,  in  the 
village  of  Kinderhook. 


BURT  VAX  HORN. 

Mr.  Yan  Horn  is  a native  of  the  town  of  New- 
fane,  Niagara  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  of  English  de- 
scent, and  about  thirty-seven  years  of  age.  He  was 
educated  at  the  Yates  Academy,  preparatory  to  enter- 
ing college,  and  in  the  winter  of  1846,  became  a stu- 
13 


290 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


dent  in  Madison  University.  His  health  failing,  he 
was  compelled  to  abandon  his  studies,  and  took  a trip 
to  the  South.  He  is  now  a farmer  and  manufacturer 
of  woollen  cloths  in  his  native  town,  and  is  said  to 
possess  superior  business  qualifications. 

Mr.  Van  Horn  made  his  first  appearance  in  public 
life  in  1858,  as  a member  of  the  same  body  to* which 
he  now  belongs.  During  that  session,  he  made  his 
maiden  speech,  on  the  subject  of  Kansas,  and  was  a 
leading  member  of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Ex- 
penditures of  the  Executive  Department.  He  was 
re-elected  in  the  fall  of  the  same  year,  and  during  the 
session  of  1859,  was  Chairman  of  the  Standing  Com- 
mittee on  Colleges,  Academies,  and  Common  Schools. 
In  politics,  he  was  originally  a Whig,  until  1848, 
when  he  acted  with  the  Freesoilers,  whom  he  subse- 
quently abandoned,  to  again  join  the  Whig  party,  to 
which  he  then  remained  firmly  attached,  until  the 
organization  of  the  Republican  movement.  He  is  a 
gentleman  of  some  ability — self-confident  and  ambi- 
tious, and  is  said  to  aspire  to  the  leadership  of  his 
party  in  the  House. 

Mr.  Van  Horn  was  married,  in  1851,  to  Miss  Char- 
lotte S.  Goodell,  and  is  a member  of  the  Baptist 
Church, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


291 


GEORGE  W.  VARIAN. 

Mr.  Varian  is  a native  of  the  city  of  New  York, 
where  he  now  resides,  and  is  fifty  years  of  age.  He  is 
descended  from  French  and  German  stock,  and  is  said 
to  be  a gentleman  of  some  influence  and  importance  in 
the  immediate  neighborhood  in  which  he  lives.  Politi- 
cally, he  has  always  been  a Democrat,  of  the  more  con- 
servative stamp,  and  is  still  true  and  unfaltering  in 
his  devotion  to  the  great  cardinal  doctrines  of  that 
party.  His  chief  worth,  however,  consists  in  his 
ability  as  a business  man,  and  until  his  election  to  his 
present  position,  he  never  cared  to  assume  the  respon- 
sibilities of  official  station. 


THEODORE  C.  VERMILYE. 

Mr.  Vermilye  was  born  in  the  year  1825,  in  the  city 
of  New  York,  and  is,  therefore,  just  in  the  prime  of  life, 
being  only  thirty-five  years  of  age.  Since  three  years 
of  age,  he  has  lived  in  the  county  of  Richmond.  He 
is  a member  of  the  only  family  by  the  name  of  Yer- 
milye  in  this  country,  and  is  a cousin  of  Dr.  Yermilye, 
late  of  the  city  of  Albany.  His  mother,  whose  maid- 
en name  was  Mary  Hoogland,  died  on  the  20th  of 
September,  1856,  at  the  age  of  seventy-three,  and  his 
father,  Thomas  B.  Yermilye,  is  still  living,  at  the  ad- 
vanced age  of  seventy-five. 


292 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Mr.  Vermilye  possesses  a fine  education,  having 
graduated  with  distinction  at  Columbia  College,  and 
studied  law  with  George  W.  Strong,  a man  of  much 
more  than  ordinary  ability  and  legal  reputation.  He 
is  now  a practising  lawyer  in  Richmond  county,  re- 
siding at  Stapleton,  and  has  thus  far  been  quite  suc- 
cessful in  the  pursuit  'of  his  profession.  He  has 
always  been  a consistent,  straight-forward,  and  inde- 
pendent Democrat ; has  occupied  the  position  of  Jus- 
tice of  the  Peace,  and  held  some  other  town  offices, 
some  eight  years,  but  never  filled  any  prominent 
official  position,  until  his  election  to  the  present  Legis- 
lature. He  was  married  in  May,  1848,  to  Miss  Han- 
nah M.  Tompkins,  a grand-daughter  of  Daniel  D. 
Tompkins,  and  is  a member  of  the  Episcopal  Church. 


THEODORE'  B.  VOORHEES. 

Mr.  Yoorhees  is  one  of  the  youngest,  and  yet  one  of 
the  most  intelligent  and  faithful,  members  of  either 
branch  of  the  Legislature.  He  is  a native  of  the  city 
of  New  York,  where  he  was  born  in  1832,  and  is  a 
descendant  of  good  old  Knickbocker  stock. 

Mr.  Yoorhees  received,  to  some  extent,  a classical 
education,  having  passed  some  time  at  Yale  College, 
and  other  similar  institutions,  but  was  finally  com- 
pelled to  abandon  his  studies  in  consequence  of  ill 
health,  which  was  subsequently  materially  improved, 
by  some  three  or  four  years’  residence,  as  a back-woods- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


293 


man  and  sportsman,  in  the  wilds  of  the  State  of  Michi- 
gan. Returning  to  his  native  city,  he  commenced  the 
study  of  the  law,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1854. 
He  then  successfully  followed  his  profession  some 
three  years,  when  he  abandoned  it,  to  devote  his  time 
exclusively  to  his  real-estate  business,  in  which  he  has 
also  been  successful. 

In  his  younger  days,  Mr.  Voorhees  was  a great  ad- 
mirer of  Henry  Clay,  Daniel  Webster,  and  men  of  that 
stamp  generally,  but  he  never  identified  himself  with 
any  particular  political  party,  until  the  organization  of 
the  Republican  movement,  when  he,  at  once,  became  a 
staunch  and  unyielding  Democrat,  of  the  more  con-  * 
servative  stamp.  He  is  an  industrious  and  efficient 
worker  in  the  Democratic  ranks,  and  has  been  espe- 
cially hostile  to  that  system  of  legislation,  which  he 
claims  has  in  view  the  abridgment,  if  not  the  ultimate 
destruction,  of  the  chartered  rights  of  the  city  of  New 
York.  His  district  was  represented,  in  the  last  Legis- 
lature, by  the  Hon.  George  Opdyke,  a Republican,  and 
he  now  comes  to  the  Assembly  as  the  successful  can- 
didate of  the  Mozart  and  Tammany  wings  of  the  De- 
mocracy. 

Mr.  Yoorhees  is  unmarried,  and  belongs  to  no  par- 
ticular church  or  denomination.  He  is  a good  writer 
and  speaker,  and  is  honest  and  faithful  in  the  dis- 
charge of  his  legislative  duties.  In  person,  he  is  one 
of  the  most  prepossessing  men  in  the  House,  being  tall 
and  elegantly  formed,  with  curly,  jet-black  hair,  and 
mustache,  black,  piercing  eyes,  and  a pale,  intelli- 


294 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


gent,  good-natured  face,  which  is  calculated  to  win 
friends  everywhere. 


WILLIAM  WALSH. 

Mr.  Walsh  is  the  youngest  man  in  the  Legislature. 
He  was  horn  in  the  parish  of  Caharconlish,  Ireland, 
on  the  1st  of  December,  1836,  and  is,  therefore,  only 
twenty-four  years  of  age.  He  came  to  America  in 
1839,  with  his  parents,  who  are  still  living,  and  fook 
up  his  residence  in  the  city  of  New  York,  where  he 
I has  always  since  resided.  He  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools  of  that  city,  and  was  chiefly  engaged  in 
mechanical  pursuits  until  1851,  after  which  he  followed 
the  liquor  trade,  until  his  election  to  his  present  posi- 
tion. 

Mr.  Walsh  has  always  been  a Democrat  of  the 
National,  conservative  stamp,  as  is,  also,  his  father, 
who,  before  leaving  the  fatherland,  belonged  to  the 
Eepealers  of  the  O^Connell  school.  He  occupies  a pop- 
ular position  in  the  local  politics  of  the  district  in 
which  he  resides,  and  is  proud  of  the  Democratic  con- 
stituency which  he  has  the  honor  to  represent  in  the 
popular  branch  of  the  Legislature.  He  is  a ^mung 
man  of  some  ability,  attending  closely  to  the  discharge 
of  the  duties  with  which  he  has  been  intrusted,  at 
Albany,  and  deserves  very  great  credit  for  having 
attained  his  present  distinction  at  so  young  an  age, 
through  his  own  industry  and  perseverance.  He  is 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


295 


perfectly  plain,  unpretending,  and  strictly  democratic 
in  all  his  public  and  private  habits,  and  affords  a 
wholesome  contrast  to  young  men,  generally,  who  are 
constantly  so  swollen  and  inflated  with  the  gas  of 
glory  and  self-conceit,  that  the  whole  universe  is 
scarcely  large  enough  for  them  to  turn  around  in,  and 
who  tread  upon  other  folks^  corns  with  the  same  un- 
concern that  a jackass  dances  among  chickens. 

Mr.  Walsh  was  married  in  May,  185t,  to  Miss  Mar- 
tin, daughter  of  Charles  Martin,  of  the  county  of  Sligo, 
Ireland,  and  attends  the  Eoman  Catholic  Church. 


SAMUEL  T.  WEBSTER. 

Mr.  Webster  was  born  on  the  Ith  of  November, 
1820,  in  Boston,  Mass.  He  sprung  from  genuine 
Eevolutionary  stock,  and  his  parents,  who  were  mar- 
ried in  1818,  came  to  the  city  of  New  York,  in  the 
year  1823.  His  father,  Samuel  M.  Webster,  who  was 
a man  of  superior  character  and  influence,  died  in 
1834,  at  the  comparatively  early  age  of  thirty-five, 
and  his  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Sarah  War- 
ren Bacon,  a daughter  of  Capt.  Joseph  Bacon,  of  Eox- 
bury.  Mass.,  is  still  living,  at  the  advanced  age  of 
sixty-one. 

Mr.  Webster  attended  the  public  schools  in  the  city 
of  New  York,  until  the  age  of  fourteen,  when,  at  his 
father^s  death,  he  became  an  apprentice  at  the  silver- 
smith's trade.  Subsequently, he  became  a painter,  which 


296 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


he  followed  successfully  until  January,  1852,  when  he 
received  the  appointment  of  first  clerk  in  the  Bureau  of 
Streets,  under  the  Hon.  Henry  Arcularius,  Commis- 
sioner of  Streets  and  Lamps,  and  the  present  popular 
member  from  the  Sixteenth  district — a position  which 
he  still  occupies,  and  in  which  he  introduced  the  present 
admirable  method  of  keeping  the  public  accounts,  in 
that  branch  of  the  City  Government.  In  politics,  he 
has  always  been  a bold,  fearless,  and  uncompromising 
Democrat,  of  the  broad,  national,  conservative  school, 
and  is  one  among  the  most  ardent  friends  and  admir- 
ers of  Mayor  Wood.  During  the  past  four  years,  he 
has  represented,  in  part,  the  Tenth  Ward,  in  the  Dem- 
ocratic Republican  General  Committee  of  Tammany 
Hall,  and  had  the  honor  of  being  elected  Secretary  of 
that  body  in  1856  and  ^51.  He  was,,  also,  one  of 
the  Secretaries  of  the  Joint  Committee,  at  the  time 
of  the  consolidation  of  the  Small  and  Savage  Com- 
mittees, and  ranks  high  among  the  better  class 
of  politicians  in  the  city  of  New  York.  He  is  a 
gentleman  of  fine  social  and  intellectual  qualities, 
enjoying  a high  degree  of  personal  and  political 
popularity,  both  at  home  and  abroad,  and  was  elected 
to  his  present  position,  by  a majority  of  nearly  five 
hundred,  over  the  combined  forces  of  the  entire  Op- 
position. 

Mr.  Webster  was  married  in  May,  1846,  to  Miss 
Sarah  Warren,  daughter  of  John  Smith,  of  Scarbo- 
rough, Maine,  and,  although  attending  no  particular 
church,  is  a Universalist  in  sentiment  and  belief. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


29t 


EZRA  S.  WHIPPLE. 

Mr.  Whipple  was  born  in  the  year  1823,  in  the 
town  of  Springfield,  Otsego  county,  N.  Y.,  where  he 
now  resides.  He  is  of  English  descent,  and  both  his 
parents  are  still  living,  at  a good  old  age.  The  advan- 
tages of  his  education  were  confined  entirely  to  the  com- 
mon district  schools  of  his  native  place,  but  he  passed 
some  time,  in  his  younger  days,  as  a successful  school- 
teacher. He  then  turned  his  attention  to  farming, 
which  has  always  since  been  his  chief  occupation,  and 
until  his  election  to  his  present  position,  he  never  held 
any  public  office,  save  that  of  Superintendent  of  Com- 
mon Schools  in  his  native  town.  He  was  married,  in 
1844,  to  Miss  Lavina,  daughter  of  Joseph  Fake,  of  the 
town  where  he  resides,  and  although  a firm  believer 
in  religion,  is  attached  to  no  particular  branch  of  the 
Church. 

Mr.  Whipple  is  a man  of  good  business  qualifica- 
tions, and  is  earnest  and  industrious  in  the  discharge 
of  his  duties  at  the  Capitol.  He  is  naturally  quiet, 
perferring  to  hear  rather  than  he  heard,  and  seldom 
participates  in  any  of  the  discussions  in  the  House. 
His  reputation  in  the  community  in  which  he  resides, 
is  that  of  a man  of  good  judgment,  undoubted  integ- 
rity, and  a sound,  practical  knowledge  of  his  occupa- 
tion as  a farmer.  His  highest  legislative  ambition  is 
to  serve  his  constituents  honestly  and  faithfully,  and 
they  will,  perhaps,  have  but  little  cause  of  complaint 
at  the  end  of  his  term  of  official  service. 

13  * 


298 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


JOHN  WILEY. 

Mr.  Wil^y  was  born  in  Dalton,  Berkshire  county, 
Mass.,  on  the  24th  of  December,  It 94,  and  is,  therefore, 
one  of  the  oldest  men  in  the  Assembly.  He  is  a son 
of  Samuel  Wiley,  who  was  of  Irish  descent,  and  who 
died  in  the  town  of  Leyden,  Lewis  county,  N.  Y.,  in 
1812,  and  is  the  grand-son  of  John  Wiley,  who  was  a 
native  of  Providence,  Rhode  Island,  and  who  served  as 
a Major  in  the  American  army,  during  the  Revolution. 

Mr.  Wiley  came  to  the  State  of  New  York  in  1808. 
He  was  educated  in  a common  school  in  his  native 
State,  and  is  now  engaged  in  farming  in  Springwater, 
Livingston  county,  where  he  has  resided  for  forty 
years.  During  the  past  two  years,  he  has  occupied 
the  position,  at  that  place,  of  Commissioner  of  the 
United  States  Deposit  Fund,  and  was  elected  to 
the  Assembly  of  1859,  by  a majority  of  over  three 
hundred.  He  held  a high  amd  influential  position  in 
that  body,  throughout  the  entire  session,  occupying  a 
prominent  place  on  the  Standing  Committee  on 
Railroads,  and  was  re-elected,  at  the  last  election,  by 
a handsome  majority.  In  politics,  he  was  originally 
a staunch  Whig,  remaining  firmly  attached  to  that 
party  as  long  as  it  had  an  existence,  and  is  now  a 
Republican.  He  is  an  influential  man  ; an  active,  in- 
telligent politician,  and  during  the  past  thirty  years, 
has  had  more  or  less  experience  in  public  speaking. 

Mr.  Wiley  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Betsey 
Southworth,  of  Litchfield,  Conn.,  in  1811,  and  in  1828 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


299 


married  his  present  wife,  Miss  Julia  B.,  daughter  of 
Robert  Hyde,  of  Virginia,  and  a niece  of  Gen.  Robert 
Goodloe  Harper,  of  Baltimore,  Maryland,  .He  attends 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  stands  deserv- 
edly high  in  all  the  private  and  social  relations  of 
life.^ 


GEOEGE  WILLIAMS. 

Mr.  Williams  was  born  on  the  Hh  of  April,  1823,  in 
the  town  of  Rome,  Oneida  county,  N.  Y.  He  is  of 
Welsh  descent,  and  his  grand-parents  came  from  Con- 
necticut to  Oneida  county,  near  the  close  of  the  last 
century.  ,Both  his  father  and  mother,  Jesse  Williams 
and  Amanda  Wells,  were  also  born  in  that  town,  and 
are  still  living,  the  former  being  sixty-one  years  of 
age,  and  the  latter  fifty-seven. 

Mr.  Williams  was,  for  a short  time,  a student 
at  the  academies  in  Clinton  and  Whitesboro,  in  his 
native  county,  but  he  obtained  his  education,  chiefly, 
in  the  common  schools  of  that  day.  He  has  always 
been  an  enterprising  and  successful  farmer,  with 
which  he  has  associated  the  manufacture  of  cheese, 
and,  in  favorable  seasons,  has  made  as  high  as  sixty 
tons  of  that  article.  His  election  to  his  present  po- 
sition was  his  first  entrance  into  public  life,  he  hav- 
ing never  previously  held  any  important  public  po- 
sition ; but  he  possesses  qualities  which  fit  him  well 
for  a proper  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his  new  po- 


300 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


sitioii.  He  was  always  a Whig,  until  the  inaugura- 
tion of  the  Republican  movement,  when  he,  at  once, 
became  a zealous  member  of  that  party. 

Mr.  Williams  was  married  on  the  5th  of  June,  1849, 
to  Miss  Annie  S.,  daughter  of  Col.  Benjamin  Rudd,  of 
Oneida  county,  who  was  in  the  American  service,  at 
SacketCs  Harbor,  during  the  war  of  1812.  He  chiefly 
attends  the  Methodist  Church,  of  which  his  wife  is  a 
devoted  member,  and  is  both  personally  and  politically 
a popular  man  throughout  the  entire  section  of  country 
in  which  he  resides. 


CHRISTIAN  B.  WOODRUFF. 

Mr.  Woodruif  is  a native  of  J^he  city  of  New  York, 
where  he  now  resides,  and  is  thirty -one  years  of  age. 
He  was  a member  of  the  House  in  1859,  pursuing  a 
quiet  and  industrious  course  in  that  body  as  a mem- 
ber of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Privileges  and 
Elections,  and  was  re-elected,  at  the  last  election,  by 
an  increased  majority  over  the  combined  Opposition. 

Mr.  Woodruff  has  always  been  firmly  and  consist- 
ently attached  to  the  Democratic  party,  and  wields  a 
pretty  -strong  political  influence  throughout  the  dis- 
trict which  he  represents.  He  is  a young  gentleman 
of  superior  personal  qualifications,  the  attachments 
of  his  friends  and  associates  being  strong  and  un- 
yielding, and  he  is  said  to  be  among  the  most  faithful 
and  energetic  in  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his 
present  position. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


301 


PETER  S.  YEURY. 

% 

Mr.  Yeury  was  born  in  Eockland  county,  N.  Y., 
where  he  now  resides,  and  is  forty-four  years  of  age. 
He  has  always  been  an  orthodox  Democrat,  bf  the  old- 
line  school,  and  is  said  to  be  a gentleman  of  consid- 
erable importance  in  the  immediate  community  in 
which  he  resides.  He  possesses  an  easy  temper  and 
a good  disposition,  discovering  a degree  of  plausi- 
bility in  almost  every  thing,  and  is  easily  allured  from 
his  better  judgment  by  the  pretended  friendship  of  the 
greedy  harpies  who  constantly  throng  the  lobby 
— that  ephemeral,  phosphorescent  friendship  which 
takes  fire  from  the  putridness  of  the  grosser  passions, 
even  as  jack-o^-lanterns  arise  from  the  decayed  and 
stinking  carcasses  of  frogs  and  meadow-turtles.  The 
world  revolves  ; and  so  long  as  it  continues  to  revolve, 
shall  we  be  shaken  up,  displaced,  and  scattered,  like 
the  children  of  Israel,  when  they  undertook  to  ride 
the  elephant  out  of  the  woods  into  Egypt. 


ALPHABETICAL  LIST 


OF 

MEMBERS  OE  THE  ASSEMBLY, 

With  the  Districts  and  Counties  they  represent^  Post-office 
address^  and  Politics. 

Hon.  Be  Witt  C.  Littlejohn,  Speaker^  Oswego  co.,  Rep. 


Dis.  Assemblymen. 

2.  Allen,  Benjamin, 

1.  Allen,  Orlando, 

16.  Arcnlarius,  Henry, 

1.  Barden,  George  R., 

2.  Barnett,  James, 

1.  Beebe,  Samuel  L., 

3.  Bingham,  Anson, 

2.  Bixby,  Abel  J., 

1.  Bowman,  Jay  D., 

6.  Briggs,  Charles  M. , 

1.  Burns,  William, 

2.  Bush,  Joseph, 

1.  Butler,  Benjamin  C., . . . . 

2.  Cadwell,  Harvey  R. , 

3.  Callicot,  Theophilus  C.,. 

2.  Carter,  William  H., 

3.  Chittenden,  Clark  S. , 

1.  Clark,  David, 

2.  Clark,  Jeremiah, 

3.  Clark,  Philetus, 

1.  Coleman,  Thomas, 

5.  Cole,  William  L., 

4.  Collins,  Lorenzo  D., , . . . 

7.  Conkling,  Frederick  A.,. 

1.  Cook,  EbenezerG., 

1.  Coonley,  Gerry, 

10.  Cooper,  Joseph  P. , 


Counties. 

P.  0.  Address. 

Pol. 

Oneida, 

, Oriskany  Falls. . . 

R. 

Erie, 

. Buffalo 

A. 

New  York,  . . 

. New  York 

D. 

Yates, 

. Benton  Centre.  . . 

R. 

Madison,  .... 

. Peterboro’ 

R. 

Chenango, 

. Union  Val.  Cor.  co.  R. 

Rensselaer. . . 

. Nassau 

R. 

Wayne, 

. Ontario 

R. 

Montgomery, . 

. Bur  tons  ville 

A. 

Kings, 

, Williamsburgh. . . 

R. 

New  York, . . 

. New  York 

D. 

Chenango 

. Bainbridge 

R. 

Warren 

. Luzerne. 

R. 

Orange 

. Otisville 

D. 

Kmgs 

. 48  Pine  st.,  N.  Y. 

D. 

Oswego 

. Brewer  ton 

R. 

St.  Lawrence. . 

Hopkinton 

R. 

Madison ...... 

Earl  ville 

R. 

Ulster 

, Marlborough .... 

D. 

Onondaga  . . . . 

, Otisco 

R. 

Rensselaer. . . . 

Troy 

A. 

New  York. .’. , 

, New  York 

D. 

Albany 

, West  Troy 

R. 

New  York. . . 

. New  York 

R. 

Chautauqua. . 

. Panama 

R. 

Greene 

, New  Baltimore  . . 

D. 

New  ¥ork . . . 

. New  York 

R. 

% 


304 


MEMBERS  OF  THE  ASSEMBLY. 


Dis.  Assemblymen. 

Counties. 

P.  0.  Address. 

Pol. 

2.  Cornelius,  Eichard  J.,. . . 

Suffolk 

. Amityville 

D. 

1.  Couchman,  John  W., . . . 

Schoharie. . . . 

. Livingston ville . . 

D. 

1.  Crane,  Ulysses, 

Cattaraugus. . 

. Sandusky 

. E. 

2.  Crocker,  Wickham  E., . . 

Steuben 

. Cameron 

. E. 

2.  Culver,  James  A., 

Eensselaer . . . 

. Berlin 

. E. 

4.  Darcy,  James, 

Kings 

. Brooklyn 

D. 

1.  Decker,  Abram  W., 

Sullivan 

. Pond  Eddy 

D. 

1.  Dickinson,  Wells, 

Franklin 

. Bangor 

. E. 

1.  Dorsch,  Peter 

Schenectady  . 

. Schenectady. . . . , 

. E. 

1.  Downs,  Edwin  H. , 

Schuyler 

. Havana 

. E. 

1.  Dwight,  Jeremiah  W.,.  . 

Tompkins  . . . 

. Dryden 

. E. 

1.  Earll,  David, 

Tioga 

. Tioga  Centre  ... 

. E. 

2.  Ellsworth,  Judiah 

Saratoga 

. Saratoga  Springs 

. E. 

1.  Emerick,  Jeremiah 

Onondaga  . . . 

. Baldwinsville . . . 

. E. 

3.  Evans,  Thomas, 

Oneida 

. Florence 

E. 

1.  Finch,  Martin, 

Essex 

. Keese ville 

A. 

7.  Fisher,  George  H.,. . . . .. 

Kings 

. 40  Park  row,  N.Y.  E. 

1.  Flagler,  Thomas  T., 

Niagara 

. Lockport 

. E. 

1.  Fuller,  Samuel  L., 

Livingston . . . 

. Conesus  Centre. . . 

. E. 

1.  Fulton,  John, 

Saratoga 

. Waterford 

D. 

2.  Garrettson,  Eichard  J., . . 

Dutchess  .... 

. Ehinebeck 

D. 

3.  Gibhs,  Samuel  W., 

Albany 

. Albany 

D. 

4.  Gover,  William  C., 

New  York. . . 

. New  York 

D. 

1.  Gray,  Daniel, 

Steuben 

. Wheeler 

. E. 

1.  Hall,  John  C., 

Seneca 

. Farmer 

D. 

17.  Harris,  William 

New  York. . . 

. New  York 

D. 

2.  Holcomb,  Irving, 

Herkimer. . . . 

. Cedarville 

E. 

1.  Hoskins,  George  G., . . . . 

Wyoming  . . . 

. Bennington 

E. 

1.  Hough,  Eichard  T. , 

Lewis 

. Lewis 

E. 

3.  Hubbell,  Gaylord B., . . . . 

Westchester. . 

. Sing  Sing 

, E. 

2.  Jakway,  Pelatiah, 

Washington  . 

, Fort  Ann 

. E. 

9.  Jaques,  David  E. , 

New  York. . . 

. New  York 

. E. 

1.  Jeffords,  Thomas  J., . . . . 

Monroe 

. Eush 

E. 

1.  Jennings,  Philander  E. , . 

Suffolk 

. Sag  Harbor 

E. 

1.  Jewell,  Humphrey, 

Uster 

. West  Hurley. . . . 

A. 

MEMBERS  OF  THE  ASSEMBLY. 


305 


Dis.  Assemblymen. 

3.  Jewett,  Moses  C., 

1.  Johnson,  Barna  R., 

6.  Jones,  William  C. , 

2.  Kelsey,  Charles, 

3.  Kelsey,  Robert  S., 

1.  Kennedy,  James, 

3.  Kortright,  John  H., 

2.  Law,  Samuel  A., 

1.  McArthur,  Peter, 

1.  McFadden,  Henry, 

1.  McQuade.  James, 

1.  McVean,  John, 

13.  Masterson,  Peter, 

1.  Mather,  Henry, 

2.  Maxson,  Darwin  E. . . . . . 

2.  Merritt,  Edwin  A. , 

2.  Merselis,  Stephen,  Jr.,.  . 

2.  Miller,  Henry  B. 

1.  Milliken,  Wm.  T.  B.,.f. 

1.  Millington,  Stephen  R., . 

2.  Morgan,  Allen  D., 

1.  Moulton,  Eldridge  Gr.,. . „ 

2.  Myres,  Austin, 

1.  Myers,  Andrew  A., 

3.  Newell,  Hiram, 

2.  Odell,  N.  Holmes, 

8.  O’ Rorke,  Thomas, 

1.  Palmer,  Abijah  W., . . . . 

1.  Payne,  William  W. , 

1.  Peck,  Lewis, 

1.  Pelton,  Edwin  A.,  . 

3.  Perry,  Alphonso, 

2.  Pettit,  John, 

4.  Plumb,  Joseph  H., 

2.  Pond,  Elias, 


Counties. 

P.  0.  Address. 

Pol. 

Jefferson 

. Redwood 

. R. 

Delaware 

. Downsville 

. R. 

Kings 

Brooklyn 

. D. 

Kings 

. Brooklyn 

. D. 

Oswego 

, New  Haven 

. R. 

Furn& Ham’ n. West  Galway. . . 

. D. 

Ulster 

. Kerhonkson. . . . 

. D. 

Delaware 

, Meredith 

. A. 

Columbia. . . . 

. Copake 

. R. 

Clinton 

Beekmantown. . . 

. R. 

Oneida 

. Utica 

. R. 

Cortland 

, Freetown 

. R. 

New  York. . . . 

, New  York 

. D. 

Broome 

Binghamton 

. R. 

Allegany  .... 

. Alfred  Centre . . . 

. R. 

St.  Lawrence. . 

, East  Pierrepont . 

. R. 

Albany 

Knox 

. R. 

Erie 

, Buffalo 

. R. 

Westchester. . . 

Morrisania 

. R. 

Herkimer 

. Norway 

. R. 

Cayuga 

, The  Square 

. R. 

Genesee 

. Alexander 

. R. 

Onondaga  . . . . 

Syracuse  

. R. 

Kings 

Canarsie 

. D. 

Erie 

, Tonawanda 

. R. 

Westchester  . . 

Tarrytown 

. A. 

New  York. . . . 

New  York 

D. 

Dutchess 

Amenia 

. R. 

Cayuga 

Auburn 

. R. 

Ontario 

Phelps 

. R. 

Putnam 

Cold  Spring 

. R. 

Monroe 

Clarkson 

. R. 

Queens 

Hempstead 

. D. 

Erie 

Gowanda 

. A. 

Monroe 

Rochester 

. R. 

306 


MEMBERS  OF  THE  ASSEMBLY. 


Dis.  Assemblymen. 

Counties. 

P.  0.  Address. 

Pol. 

2.  Powell,  Shotwell, 

. Ontario 

. Naples 

. E. 

1.  Began,  Peter  C., 

. Orange 

. Buttermilk  Falls . D. 

1.  Eichardson,  Charles, . . . 

. St.  Lawrence. 

. Morristown 

. E. 

3.  Eider,  Lorenzo  N., 

. Steuben 

, Haskinville 

. E. 

1.  Eobinson,  Lucius, 

. Chemung 

. Elmira 

, . E. 

2.  St.  John,  David  B.,. . , . 

. Otsego 

Edmeston 

. E. 

1.  Savaa'e,  Janies, 

. Washington  . . 

. Argyle 

. E. 

1.  Searles,  Bernard  B.,. . . . 

. Jefferson 

, Ellishurgh 

. E. 

1.  Servis,  James  M., 

. Wayne 

, Savannah 

. E. 

1.  Slingerland,  John  I. , . . . 

. Albany 

Norman’s  Kill. . 

. E. 

12.  Smith,  Andrew, 

. New  York. . . , 

, New  York 

. D. 

2.  Smith,  Hiram, 

Chautauqua. . . 

Smith’s  Mills. . . 

. E. 

2.  Smith,  James  M. 

. Cattaraugus. . . 

Eddyville 

. E. 

1.  Smith,  William  M., 

. Allegany 

, Short  Tract 

. E. 

1.  Stilson,  Abel, 

Orleans 

Barre  Centre. . . . 

. E. 

1.  Taber,  Stephen, 

Queens 

Eoslyn 

. D. 

2.  Taggart,  William, 

Jefferson 

, Evan’s  Mills. . . . 

. E. 

11.  Tucker,  Cummings  H. . 

, New  York. . . . 

New  York 

. E. 

2.  Van  Alstyne,  P.  Edward  Columbia 

Kinderhook 

. E. 

2.  Van  Horn,  Burt 

Niagara 

Newfane 

. E. 

15.  Varian,  George  W., 

New  York. . . . 

New  York 

. D. 

1.  Vermilye,  Theodore  C.,. 

Eichmond. . . . 

Stapleton 

. D. 

14.  Voorhees,  Theodore  B.,. 

New  York. . . . 

New  York 

. D. 

2.  Walsh,  William 

, New  York. . . . 

New  York 

. D. 

6.  Webster,  Samuel  T., . . . . 

New  York. . . . 

New  York 

. D. 

1.  Whipple,  Ezra  S., 

Otsego 

Springfield  Centre  E. 

2.  Wiley,  John, 

Livingston .... 

Springwater 

. E. 

4.  Williams,  George, 

Oneida 

Western ville  . . . 

. E. 

3.  Woodruff,  Christian  B.,. 

New  York. . . . 

New  York 

. D. 

1.  Yeury,  Peter  S., 

Eockland. . . . . 

Nanuet 

D. 

ASSEMBLY  COMMITTEES. 


307 


ASSEMBLY  STANDING  COMMITTEES. 

Ways  and  Means. — Flagler,  Conkling,  St.  John,  Payne,  Bush, 
Callicot,  Odell. 

Commerce  and  Navigation.-^MiHQT,  A.  Myres,  Cooper,  Briggs,  Mas- 
ter son. 

Canals. — 0.  Allen,  Collins,  Earll,  Taggart,  Carter,  Fulton,  Hall. 

Railroads. — Wiley,  McQuade,  Dickinson,  Gihhs,  Taber. 

Banks. — Coleman,  Tucker,  Hough,  Plumb,  Yarian. 

Insurance  Companies. — Conkling,  Searles,  Merritt,  Hoskins,  Gover. 

Two-thirds^ and  Three-fifths  Bills. — Beebe,  Holcomb,  Bixby,  Yoor- 
hees,  Yermilye. 

Colleges.,  Academies,  and  Common  Schools. — Yan  Horn,  Millington, 
Maxson,  Palmer,  Odell. 

Grievances. — Servis,  D.  Clark,  Eider,  Cadwell,  Kortright. 

Privileges  and  Elections. — Jakway,  Yan  Alstyne,  Peck,  Pettit, 
Jones. 

Petitions  of  Aliens. — Figher,  Jakway,  Whipple,  Yermilye,  Yoor- 
hees. 

State  Prisons. — Hubbell,  Morgan,  McFadden,  Garrettson,  Webster. 

Engrossed  Bills. — Jennings,  Merritt,  McYean,  Stilson,  Webster. 

Militia. — Butler,  Jennings,  Newell,  Began,  Woodruff. 

Roads  and  Bridges. — Pelton,  Holcomb,  Evans,  Yeury,  Harris. 

Public  Lands. — Jeffords,  McArthur,  B.  Allen,  Merselis,  Pettit. 

Indian  Affairs. — P.  Clark,  Jeffords,  Jewett,  Coonley,  Walsh. 

Charitable  and  Religious  Societies. — Powell,  J.  M.  Smith,  Barden, 
Masterson,  Kennedy. 

Agriculture. — Slingerland,  Crane,  Eichardson,  J.  Clark,  Decker. 

Erection  and  Division  of  Towns  and  Counties. — Perry,  W.  M.  Smith, 
Yan  Alstyne,  Couchman,  Woodruff. 

Claims. — Fuller,  Ellsworth,  Emerick,  Cornelius,  A.  A.  Myers. 

Internal  Affairs  of  Towns  and  Counties. — Dwight,  Butler,  E.  S. 
Kelsey,  H.  Smith,  Darcy. 

Medical  Societies  and  Colleges. — Crocker,  W.  M.  Smith,  Savage,  Me 
Yean,  Coles. 


308 


ASSEMBLY  COMMITTEES. 


State  Charitable  Institutions. — Mather,  Barnett,  Cook,  Williams, 
Coles. 

Incorporation  of  Cities  and  Villages. — Pond,  Law,  Jones,  Collins, 
Downs,  A.  Smith,  Tucker. 

Manufacture  of  Salt. — A.  Myres,  Coleman,  Bixhy,  Bowman,  Burns. 

Trade  and  Manufadures. — Moulton,  Culver,  Barnett,  Arcularius, 
C.  Kelsey. 

Public  Printing. — Law,  Peck,  McQuade,  Servis,  Gover. 

Expenditures  of  the  Executive  Department. — Payne,  Chittenden, 
Dorsch,  Jewell,  O’Rourke. 

Expenditures  of  the  House. — Tucker,  Gray,  Palmer,  C.  Kelsey, 
Jones. 

Judiciary. — Bingham,  Robinson,  Finch,  Johnson,  Jaques,  Milli- 
ken,  Callicot,  Vermilye. 

Joint  Library. — Millington,  Maxson,  Fisher,  Stilson,  Varian. 

Select  Committee  on  Petitions  ashing  for  the  Passage  of  a Pro  Rata  Freight 
Law,  to  be  applied  to  Railroads. — Flagler,  H.  Smith,  Emerick,  Moul- 
ton, Fulton,  Conkling,  Varian. 

Select  Committee  on  Petitions  on  the  Subject  of  the  Rights  of  all  Classes  of 
Persons  in  this  State  to  Personal  and  Civil  Liberty. — H.  Smith,  Powell, 
Savage,  Vermilye,  Pettit. 

Select  Committee  on  so  much  of  the  Governor's  Message  as  relates  to  the 
Excise  Law. — Plumb,  Dorsch,  Finch,  Woodruff,  Barden. 


STATE  OFFICERS. 


309 


STATE  OFFICERS, 

And  Clerks  in  the  Departments,  with  their  Salaries, 


Executive  Department. 


Name. 

OfiQce. 

Salary. 

E.  D.  Morgan,  

. Governor  

$4,000 

Robert  Campbell, 

. Lieut.  Governor ......... 

Geo.  Bliss,  Jr., 

. Private  Secretary 

2,000 

Lockwood  L.  Doty, 

. Chief  Clerk 

2,000 

John  H.  linsly, 

. Messenger 

600 

State 

Department. 

Name. 

Oifice. 

Salary. 

David  R.  Floyd  Jones, 

. Secretary  of  State 

$2,600 

Henry  Wilcox, 

. Dep.  Secretary  of  State . . , 

1,700 

A.  N.  Wakefield, 

. Chief  Clerk 

1,000 

Diedrich  Willus,  Jr., 

. Clerk 

1,000 

Jonathan  H.  Burdick  . , . . 

n * 

1,000 

David  B.  McNeil,  Jr.,. . . . 

a 

1,000 

Robert  Bamber, 

1,000 

John  Sharts, ‘‘  1,000 


Comptroller’s  Department. 


Name. 

Oflace. 

Salary. 

Robert  Denniston, 

. . Comptroller 

$2,600 

Philip  Phelps,  

. . Dep.  Comptroller 

2,000 

Peter  Keyser, 

, . Acct.  and  Transfer  Ofiicer.  . 

1,760 

Brace  Millerd,  

. . Chief  Tax  Clerk 

1,200 

Beverly  R.  Hasbrouck,  ^ . 

. . Entry  Clerk 

1,200 

Henry  B.  Burr, 

. . Clerk 

900 

D.  B.  Cole, 

n 

900 

310 


STATE  OFFICERS. 


Name.  ^ Office.  Salary. 

Augustus  Denniston, ......  Clerk  $900 

Henry  Evans,  “ 900 

Francis  G.  Fine, “ 900 

Henry  Gallien, “ 900 

J.  McMurdy, “ 900 

A.  G.  Murray, ............  “ 900 

Edmund  Sloan,  “ .* - 900 

Arthur  B.  Wood, 900 


Teeasubee’s  Depaetment. 


Name. 

Office. 

Salary. 

Philip  Dorsheimer,  

, . . Treasurer. 

$2,500 

Joseph  Stringham, 

. . Dep.  Treasurer 

1,600 

George  A.  Stannard, 

. . Clerk 

1,000 

Louis  Duemplemann,  . . . 

a 

1,000 

Charles  H.  Payne, “ 1,000 


Attoeney  GtEneeal’s  Depaetment. 


Name. 

.Office. 

Salary. 

Charles  G.  Myers, 

Attorney  General 

$2,500 

Stephen  H.  Hammond, . . . . 

Dep.  Attorney  General .... 

1,500 

George  R.  Myers, 

Clerk 

800 

Matthew  Hendrickson, . . . . 

Messenger 

250 

State  Engineee 

AND  SuEVEYOE’s 

Dept. 

Name. 

» Office. 

Salary. 

Van  R.  Richmond, 

State  Engineer  and  Surv’yor 

$2,500 

George  R.  Perkins, 

Dep.  State  Eng.  and  Surv. 

2,000 

B.  S.  Van  Rensselaer, 

Land  Department 

900 

J.  Wesley  Smith, 

Engineer  Clerk 

750 

Henry  A.  Petrie, 

Railroad  Clerk 

750 

OFFICERS  OF  THE  SENATE. 


311 


OFFICEES  OF  THE  SENATE- 


Name. 

OflBce. 

County. 

James  Terwilliger, . . . . 

Clerk 

Onondaga. 

Charles  G.  Fairman, . . 

Journal  Clerk 

, Chemung. 

Asahel  N.  Cole, 

. Assistant  Clerk, 

. Allegany. 

Lauren  L.  Kose, ...... 

Deputy  Clerk, 

Wayne. 

Loren  B.  Sessions, 

(i 

Chautauqua. 

Ira  Bowen 

Librarian, 

Cortland. 

James  C.  Clark, 

Sergeant-at-Arms 

Warren. 

George  H.  Knapp 

Post-master, 

Dutchess. 

Peter  Kilmer 

Door-keeper, 

Schoharie. 

Charles  Johnson, 

, 1st  Assistant  Doorkeeper, . 

. Herkimer. 

John  H.  France, 

2d 

. Ulster. 

Casper  Walter, 

3d 

. Monroe. 

Thomas  McBurney . . . . 

. Assistant  Postmaster, 

, Chemung. 

Caleb  S.  Babcock, .... 

. Ass’t  Sergeant-at-Arms, . . , 

. Westchester. 

Nathaniel  Goodwin,. . 

. Keeper  Senate  Chamber, . 

. Albany. 

Joseph  Garlinghouse, . 

. Janitor, 

Cayuga . 

REPOETERS. 


Name.  Paper. 

T.  S.  Gillett, Albany  Evening  Journal. 

D.  A.  Manning, Albany  Atlas  and  Argus. 

Wm.  H.  Bogart, N.  Y.  Courier  and  Enquirer. 

James  McFarland Albany  Evening  Standard. 

J.  C.  Cuyler, Albany  Express. 

James  M.  Baker, Courrier  des  Etats  Unis. 

0.  G.  Sawyer, N.  Y.  Commercial  Advertiser. 

S.  W.  Morton, Brooklyn  Daily  News. 

W.  Howard  Bailey, Brooklyn  Daily  Transcript. 

G.  B.  Waldron, Hamilton  Eepublican. 

Spence  Spencer, American  Citizen. 


312 


OFFICERS  OF  THE  ASSEMBLY. 


OFFICERS  OF  THE  ASSEMBLY. 


, Name. 

OfiQce. 

County. 

William  Eichardson, . . . 

Clerk, 

Albany. 

Luther  Caldwell, 

Assistant  Clerk, 

Eockland. 

Cornelius  S.  Underwood, 

Journal  Clerk, 

Cayuga. 

Henry  S.  Crandall, 

Engrossing  Clerk, 

Washington. 

John  A.  Haddock, 

Senior  Deputy  Clerk, 

Jefferson. 

Zachariah  H.  Sloat, .... 

Junior  Deputy  Clerk, 

Delaware. 

Henry  Stines, 

Librarian, 

Niagara. 

Charles  Missing, 

Assistant  Librarian, 

New  York. 

E.  A.  Williams, 

Sergeant-at-Arms, 

Onondaga. 

Morgan  H.  Chrysler, . . . 

Ass’t  Sergeant-at-Arms, . . . 

Saratoga. 

Charles  S.  Horton,  .... 

Postmaster, 

Allegany. 

Michael  H.  McClave,  . . 

Assistant  Postmaster, 

Steuben. 

Joseph  Ball, 

Doorkeeper, 

Erie. 

Charles  L.  Curtiss, 

1st  Ass’t  Doorkeeper, 

Ontario. 

Bradford  Davis, 

2d  Ass’t  Doorkeeper, 

Otsego. 

Peter  Eeed, 

Doorkeeper,  gents’  gallery. 

Genesee. 

Eufus  Ehodes, 

Doorkeeper,  ladies’  gallery. 

Ulster. 

Otis  F.  Smith, 

north  outer  door, 

Franklin. 

Henry  B.  Baxter, 

middle  outer  door, 

Cattaraugus. 

David  Nichols, 

south  outer  door, 

Tompkins. 

Nehemiah  Shannon, . . . 

cloak-room  door, 

Schuyler. 

Jacob  Eosengarden,. . . . 

1 1 

Kings. 

Adam  W.  Mattice,  .... 

i i 

Putnam. 

A.  L.  Young, 

a 

Westchester. 

John  F.  Curtis, 

Keeper  Assembly  Chamber, 

Wayne. 

Hugh  Magee,  

Janitor 

Steuben. 

ASSEMBLY  REPORTERS. 


313 


REPORTERS. 


Name. 

George  Dawson, 

D.  A.  Levien, 

T.  Comstock, 

Wm.  M.  Gillespie, . . . . 

R.  M.  Griffin, 

H.  J.  Hastings,  

J.  T.  Cleveland, 

Alexander  Wilder, . . . . 
C.  M.  Hammond, .... 
Thomas  T.  Everett, . .. . 

Hiram  Calkins, 

George  W.  Bull, 

Thomas  S.  Truair, . . . . 

J.  B.  Stonehouse, 

William  Stuart, 

Dennison  Card, 

Michael  McQuade,  Jr. , 
C.  M.  Scholefield,  . . . . 

E.  B.  Spooner, 

J.  B.  Manning, 

J.  M.  Baker, 


Paper. 

Albany  Evening  Journal. 
Associated  Press. 

Albany  Atlas  and  Argus. 
Albany  Statesman. 

Albany  Evening  Standard. 
Albany  Knickerbocker. 

New  York  Tribune. 

New  York  Evening  Post. 

New  York  Express. 

New  York  Daily  News. 

New  York  Herald. 

Buffalo  Republic. 

Syracuse  Journal. 

Elmira  Daily  Advertiser. 
Binghamton  Daily  Republican. 
Rochester  Daily  Express. 

Utica  Telegraph. 

Utica  Herald. 

Brooklyn  Daily  Star. 

Brooklyn  Eagle. 

Coiirrier  des  Etats  Unis. 


14 


314 


ADVERTISEMENTS. 


% 

WM.  ID.  ]VITJRP*HY, 

ATTomiE!  & mmm  it  liw, 

No.  74  STATE  STREET, 

IT® 


Ift-IGIPEJIlJEnsreKlS: 

Hon.  TRUMAN  SMITH,  New  York  City. 

Hon.  SAMUEL  LAHM,  Canton,  O. 

JOHN  LAHM,  Esq.,  Canton,  O. 

GEO.  Y.  DEITERIOH,  Esq.,  Canton,  O. 

Hon.  H.  MHNTER  DAYIS,  Baltimore,  Md. 

Hon.  O.  B.  WHEELER,  Sullivan  county,  N.  Y. 
JAMES  L.  TORBERT,  Esq.,  New  Orleans,  La. 
Hon.  H.  S.  FITCH,  Chicago,  111. 

Hon.  THOMAS  H.  CLAY,  Lexington,  Ky. 
DANL.  S.  Y^OLEINGER,  Esq.,  Washington  co.,  Md. 
SAMUEL  F.  ZEIGLER,  Washington  co.,  Md. 


EDWARD  DUFFEY,  M.  D. 

Office,  €or.  of  MAIDEN  LANE  and  JAMES  STREET, 
ALBANY.  N.  Y. 


ADVERTISEMENTS. 


315 


THE  CHEAPEST  BOOK  STORE  IN  ALBANY! 

E.  H.  BENDER’S 

SCHOOI.  BOOK  DEPOT, 

A NB 

Patent  Papd  Account  Book  Manufactory, 

No.  73  STATE  ST.,  ALBANY,  N.  Y. 


FOREIGN  AND  DOMESTIC  STATIONERY, 

Of'  IGvery  Description.,  at  'W'liolesale  and.  Detail. 


FOREIGN  BOOKS  IMPORTED  TO  ORDER. 


]\I  ^ H , O ' L O r3  E , 

AND 

SCIENTIFiC  APFARATUS, 

CONSTANTLY'  ON  HAND. 

L A.  W B L .zY  IST  K;  S , 

OF  ALI.  KINDS. 

-jBXi^iDXisrcs-  Sc  lE^xixxrrrxxTcs-, 

DONE  IN  THE  NEATEST  MANNER,  AND  AT  THE  LOWEST  R.ATES. 


Particular  atteution  paid  to  Biudingr  Magazines,  &c. 


316 


advertisements. 


DR.  CAPROITN’S 


AN  EXTERNAL  REMEDY. 

GIVES  INSTANTANEOUS  RELIEF 


AND 

SPEEDY  CLARES 

In  all  cases  of  Reuralgia  and  Rervous  Headache  ; also,  all 
recent  cases  of  Inflammatory  Rheumatism,  Sprains,  Strains, 
Bruises,  Lame  Backs,  Sides,  &c..  Stiff  or  Swollen  Joints, 
Frozen  Feet,  Chilblains,  Cuts,  Scalds  and  Burns,  Corns, 
Bunions,  Lame  and  Swollen  Feet,  and  every  thing  where 
an  external  remedy  can  benefit. 

It  cures  Putrid  Sore-throat  by  using  it  as  a liniment, 
and  reducing  with  ^ w^ater,  for  a gurgle.  It  needs  no  rub- 
bing or  roasting  in,  and  yet  it  is  free  from  any  thing  which 
can  in  any  way  weaken  or  injure  chords  or  joints.  By 
using  it  on  the  Head,  it  is  an  excellent  article  for  cleansing 
the  Scalp  of  Dandruff  and  Scaly  Eruptions,  by  allaying 
the  inflammation,  thereby  removing  the  cause  and  prevent- 
ing the  hair  from  falling  out.  It  Soothes  Pain,  Allays  In- 
flammation, and  Reduces  Swellings.  Superior  to  any  thing 
ever  offered  to  the  American  People. 

IT  CAN  BE  SENT  TO  ANY  PART  OF 

THCE  XJI^ITEID  STA.TES, 

AND 

LIBERAL  REDUCTION'S  WILL  BE  MADE  TO  DEALERS. 

^50  Ooiitw  33ottle. 

Manufactured  and  Sold  Wholesale  and  Retail  by 

J.  D.  C^DROUISr, 

33  Pan  Schaack  Street ^ Mhany^ 


ADTERTISEMENTS. 


3lt 


D.  DENISON’S 

PHOTOGRtPHiC  m IMBROTYPE 

57  State  Street,  Albany,  N.Y. 


PLAIN  AND  IMPERIAL 

A*  XA  O O CX  IX  A.  !?•  H S$, 

Photographs  Colored  in  Oil  or  Water 
from  Miniature  to  size  of  Life. 

DAGUEBREOTYPiS  OR  AMBROTYPES 

Of  Deceased  Persons,  or  others,  copied  from  the  smallest  pictures 
to  life  size,  and  Colored  in  Oil  or  Water,  or  finished  in  India  Ink. 
and  warranted  satisfactory  and  perfectly  durable. 

All  pictures  are  made  under  the  personal  supervision  of  the  pro- 
prietor, and  finished  by 

FIRST-CLASS  ARTISTS. 

1'^  Remember  the  nmnber, 

57  STATE  STREET,  ALBANY,  N.  Y. 

D.  DENISON. 


318 


ADVERTISEMENTS. 


HOBART  & DUTHIE, 


No.  74  STATE  STREET, 


ALBANY,  N.  Y^. 


PORTM.tlTS^ 

S JP  JS 

C^tRRIS^ 


'Notes,  Bonds,  Diplomas,  Certificates  of  Stock  and 
Membership,  Letter  Headings,  Labels,  Engravings, 
Seals,  Envelopes,  &c.,  of  the  best  quality, 
and  at  the  lowest  rates. 


Just  Published  and  for  Hale, 

Portraits  of  the  Professors  of  the  Medical  College, 

AND 

A TEMPERANCE  CERTIFICATE. 

The  last  has  been  gotten  up  at  the  request  and  under  the  pat- 
ronage of  the  N.  Y.  State  Temperance  Society,  and  no  expense  has 
been  spared  to  make  it  worthy  of  the  cause.  It  will  be  furnished 
at  such  rates,  that  it  can  be  sold  at  retail  for  10  Cents  per  Copy, 

All  orders  by  mail  attended  to.  Address 

KOBART  & DUTHIE, 

74  State  St.,  Albany,  N.  Y. 


ADVERTISEMENTS. 


319 


DISEASE  WITH  ITS  PAINS, 

OR 


S PLEASURES. 

Oneida  Falls,  Mad.  Co.,  N.  Y.  > 
January  28th,  1860.  f 
TO  DR.  HERRICK  & CO.— Gentle- 
men  : — About  one  year  ago,  your 
agent  called  upon  me,  and  desired 
that  I should  take  your  Pills  and 
Plasters,  to  sell  in  this  place.  At 
that  time  I was  afflicted  with  an 
Abscess  in  my  right  side,  as  large  as 
a pint  bowl,  or  larger  than  a cocoa-  • 
nut.  I had  not  buttoned  my  vest 
with  any  comfort  for  over  a year. 

I had  consulted  some  of  the  best 
physicians  in  the  State,  among  which  was  Prof.  Hamilton,  of  Buffalo,  and  many 
others,  all  of  whom  decided  that  my  disease  would  terminate  fatally  ; that  the 
abscess  would  eventually  break  inwardly,  and  run  my  life  away.  I was  not 
able  to  labor  much  for  two  years,  and  not' liking  to  be  idle,  I commenced  taking 
your  Pills.  Soon  after,  the  swelling  commenced  disappearing,  and  finally  ap- 
peared to  point  externally.  I became  alarmed,  and  sent  for  Dr.  Sprague,  who 
advised  me  to  continue  the  Pills,  as  my  cure  was  rapidly  being  completed.  I 
continued  to  use  the  Pills  in  small  doses  for  some  months,  and  found  myself 
fully  restored,  the  ulcer  healed,  and  I consider  myself  a well  man.  The  news  of 
this  cure  soon  spread  through  this  section,  and  more  than  a thousand  boxes  of 
HERRICK’S  PILLS  have  sold  in  this  vicinity.  My  Post  Office  address  is  Oneida 
Valley,  Madison  County,  N.  Y. , where  persons  interested  can  address  me,  by 
inclosing  a stamp,  and  learn  more  fully  my  sufferings  and  dangerous  condition 
for  three  long  years.  You  may  publish  this  letter  if  you  like,  to  assist  the  sick 
and  advance  your  reputation. 

Trulv  vour.s, 

D.  C.  CAIN. 


HEALTH  WITH  n 

HERRICK’S  . 
!SUGtAR-COA.XEI> 


A D 

Kir>  PL A-STERfS. 


HERRICK’S 


li  ifiliifiiiiii  piiifiii 


THE  GREAT  STREHGTHENER  AND  PAIN  DESTROYER, 


Tie  Best  and  Cheapest  Household  Eemedy  in  the  World  ! 

These  renowned  Plasters  cure  pains,  weakness,  and  distress  in  the  back,  sides, 
and  breast,  in  five  hours.  Indeed,  so  certain  are  they  to  do  this,  that 'the  pro- 
prietor warrants  them.  Spread  from  resins,  balsams,  and  gums,  on  beautiful 
Kid  Leather,  renders  them  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  wants  of  FEMALES  and 
others.  Each  Plaster  will  wear  from  one  to  four  months,  and  in  Rheumatic 
complaints,  Sprains,  and  Bruises,  frequently  effect  a cure  where  all  other 
remedies  failed.  Full  directions  will  be  found  on  the  hack  of  each.  Public 
Speakers,  Vocalists,  Ministers  of  the  Gospel,  and  others,  will  strengthen  their 
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^ above  articles  are  sold  by  all  the  Dealers,  and  by  Druggists  throughout  the 
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In  the  Princioal  Cities. 

HERRICK  Sl  brother, 

!Px*aetieal  Clieinists,  IST.  Y. 


Al^VEflTlSEMiE:NTS* 


m 


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English  Common  Law  Reports.  Vol.  92. 
Howard’s  United  States  Reports.  Vol.21. 
Complete  Index  to  all  Session  Iaws. 
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Duer’s  New  York  imports.  Vols,  5 & 6. 
Grass’s  MassachusdCts  Reports.  Vol.  7. 
Pennsylvania  Reports,  vol.  33. 
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Parker’s  Criminal  Reports.  Vol.  3. 
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Seidell’s  Court  of  Appeals  Reports.  Vol. 6. 
Kernan’s  C’t  of  Appeals  Reports.  Vol.  4. 
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U S.  Annual  Digest.  Vol.  18. 

The I.aw Library,  Philadelphia.  Vol.  100. 
Session  Laws,  1797  to  1860,  inclusive. 
Crary  ’s  New  York  Practice  in  Special 
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BENEDICT’S  CIVIL  AND  CRIMINAL  TREATISE. 

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Van  Santvoord’s  Pleading,  under  the  N. 
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UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 
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Biographical  sketches  of  the  state  offic 


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